Once upon a time, there lived a farmer who had a vineyard. Though the vineyard was small, the farmer worked hard and took good care of it. In this way, he provided his three sons with a good, happy life.
The farmer loved his sons very much. They had plenty of food, which pleased the oldest son, who loved to eat. They had comfortable beds, which pleased the middle son, who loved to sleep.
They had fine clothing, which pleased the youngest son, who loved wearing fancy clothes. The sons had everything they needed and wanted. This made the farmer proud.
Many years passed. The farmer grew old, but he still went out to the vineyard every day. One day he fell from a ladder while working. He decided to speak to his children.
"My sons," the farmer said. "I am too old and weak to continue working. Someone must tend the vineyard, or we will have no money. It's time for you three to start working."
The oldest son rolled his eyes. "I'm too hungry to work."
The middle son yawned. "I'd rather take a nap."
The youngest frowned. "I don't want to get my clothes dirty."
The farmer shook his head in disgust. "How did I raise such lazy, selfish sons?" he thought.
Over time, the farmer found himself growing weaker. Soon the house fell into disrepair. The vineyard became neglected and overgrown with weeds and tangled vines. The farmer knew he had little time left, and he despaired over his lazy sons.
One night the farmer called them to his bedside.
"My sons, I will not live much longer. There is something I must tell you before I die. There is a very special treasure in the vineyard. Find it, and it is yours."
The old man passed away that night.
The sons forgot about the treasure for a while. But then the oldest noticed they were running out of food—and money.
"Maybe Father's treasure is money," he said.
"Yes," the middle son said. "Father's vineyard was successful before he stopped working."
"If we find that treasure, we'll never have to work!" the youngest said.
The sons went out right away.
"The vineyard is overgrown!" the youngest son said.
The middle son nodded. "We'll never find the treasure here."
"We have to tend the vineyard first," the oldest said.
They cleared the weeds and trimmed the vines. The soil was too hard to dig, so they watered it. But they saw no sign of the treasure.
Every day the sons checked the vineyard, but they didn't find the treasure.
"Look!" the youngest cried one day. His brothers ran to him.
"Did you find the treasure?" one asked.
"No," the youngest said. "But grapes are growing again. Should we pick them?"
The middle son looked at the grapes. "Maybe we should pick them. We could sell them for money."
"Good idea," the oldest said. "We can look for the treasure later."
Several years passed. The sons never saw any sign of the treasure, but the vineyard kept them busy. They watered the soil and pulled the weeds. They picked grapes and tended the vines. Eventually they stopped looking for the treasure, never realizing they had already found it. The vineyard was successful again, thanks to the sons' hard work. That was the true treasure in the vineyard.