Story
A mother, attempting to teach her son the importance of obedience, took him to a field where Nettles grew in great profusion. "These plants," she said, "are dangerous and will sting your skin painfully if you touch them carelessly. I command you not to touch them. Do you understand?"
The boy, young and curious, agreed that he understood and promised to obey.
Yet later that day, when his mother was occupied with other tasks, the boy returned to the field of Nettles. Curious about the nature of the plants, he approached one cautiously and reached out to touch it with just the tip of his finger. Immediately, the Nettle stung him painfully, causing his finger to swell and burn with an uncomfortable sensation.
Crying out, he called for his mother, who came running. She applied a soothing balm to his wound and spoke to him seriously: "Did I not command you not to touch the Nettles? This pain is the result of your disobedience. You have learned, through painful experience, the truth of my words. Had you obeyed, you would have avoided this suffering."
The boy, chastened by this experience, asked, "Mother, why did the Nettle sting me so painfully for just touching it lightly?"
His mother replied: "Because that is the nature of the Nettle. If you touch it with caution and uncertainty, it stings you. Yet if you grasp it firmly with your whole hand, it will not sting you, for your firm grip and confidence crushes the bristles that cause the sting. The Nettle injures only those who approach it with hesitation and fear. This is the lesson of obedience—that sometimes commands are given to protect us from harm. Disobedience, undertaken with uncertainty and doubt, brings suffering. But the path of clear obedience, followed with confidence and commitment, avoids the pain altogether."
The boy understood at last that obedience to his mother's commands was not a burden imposed upon him, but a protection against the dangers of a world he did not yet fully understand.