A little boy was helping his father move some books out of an attic into
more spacious quarters downstairs. It was important to this little boy
that he was helping his dad, even though he was probably getting in the way
and slowing things down more than he was actually assisting. But that boy
had a wise and patient father who knew it was more important to work at a
task with his young son than it was to move a pile of books efficiently.
Among this man's books, however, were some rather large study books, and it
was a chore for the boy to get them down the stairs. As a matter of fact,
on one particular load, the boy dropped his pile of books several times.
Finally, he sat down on the stairs and wept in frustration. He wasn't
doing any good at all. He wasn't strong enough to carry the big books down
a narrow stairway. It hurt him to think he couldn't do this for his daddy.
Without a word, the father picked up the dropped load of books, put them
into the boy's arms, and scooped up both the boy and the books into his
arms and carried them down the stairs. And so they continued load after
load, both very much enjoying each other's company. The boy carrying the
books, and the dad carrying the boy.
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