What about me? by Ed Young

"Grand Master you are wise. How many I gain a little bit of your knowledge.' ... 'You need to bring me a small carpet for my work."

And so, the boy sets off to find a small carpet. The carpet maker says he will help if the boy brings him some thread. The spinner woman who has thread will help if the boy brings her a goat because she needs goat hair to make the thread. The goat-keeper demands, of all things, goats! The goat seller wants a pen to stop his goats from straying. The carpenter asks the boy to find him a wife - wow this is getting very complicated. The matchmaker says:

"Bring me knowledge, and I will give you the young girl's name to take to the carpenter."

The boy was stunned:

"But ... but we cannot get knowledge without a carpet no carpet without thread, no thread without hair, no hair without a goat, no goat without a pen, no pen without a wife for the carpenter."

This could be the end of the tale but in a serendipitous moment the young man meets a carpet merchant with a daughter. Luckily, she already knows the carpenter and yes, she loves him. So, the pen is built, the goats are gathered, one goat provides the hair for the thread which the spinner can then spin and finally the carpet maker can make that small carpet. 

Now go back to the original question - has the boy found knowledge - the Grand Master is certain that he has.

"Some of the most precious gifts that we receive are those we receive when we are giving and often knowledge comes to us when we least expect it."

This is a Sufi tale from the Middle East. Sufi teaching-tales, like the tales of Aesop, are fables that entertain as they teach. "Their clever construction and witty conclusions bring pleasure to young and old, while their morals provide subtle wisdom and truth for all" Preface to What about me?

I talked in detail about Ed Young in a long post over the weekend. You can see inside this book here. 

Sadly, What about me? is now out of print but if you can find a copy in a library you could pair this book with Mirror by Jeannie Baker.