Once upon a time in an old Yoruba town, Alagbede, the greatest goldsmith in the land, called his 10 sons together. They were all great goldsmiths like their father. At the meeting, Alagbede said to his 10 sons, “I’m too old to be the chief goldsmith of this kingdom so I want one of you to take my place“. “I can’t choose because you’re all great goldsmiths, so I want you to compete for it. Make something really special in seven days and the person with the best creation will become the new chief goldsmith“. The brothers were excited to show their father what they could do. All of them except Ayo, Alagbede’s oldest son. Although all 10 sons were great goldsmiths, Ayo was not as good as his brothers and they all knew it.

Over the next few days, each son made something to show their father. The seventh day finally came and one by one, Alagbede’s sons arrived with what they had made. There was an elegant necklace, a beautiful bowl, a gorgeous set of five rings, a dagger, a bracelet, a charming little elephant statue, a sitting stool, a sceptre and a beautifully ornate comb. Alagbede was proud to see everything his sons had made.

As he looked at each one, he noticed that there was one missing. “Whose work is missing?” Alagbede asked. The brothers all turned to Ayo who stayed quiet. “I am disappointed that you haven’t brought anything Ayo. Your brothers may be better goldsmiths but as my oldest son, you should have made something anyway”. Alagbede criticised Ayo. “If you are too lazy to do what I asked for, I will have to choose one of your brothers to take my place”. At this, Ayo politely asked his father, “Baba before you choose, please let us eat together like we used to”. The men all agreed and sat by the fire to roast some corn for their dinner. Ayo handed everyone some roasted corn to eat. As Alagbede tried to pick his corn, he noticed that he couldn’t. Taking a closer look at it, he realised that it was made of pure gold!

Ayo had spent every single day working on his creation. He knew the only way he could win was to make something different and to work harder than his brothers. And it worked. His corn looked so real that it even fooled the greatest goldsmith. Alagbede and his other sons were so impressed with Ayo’s work, that they agreed that he had won the competition, and he became the kingdom’s new chief goldsmith.

The End.

The Morale of the Story:
This story teaches us about the importance of working hard even if it seems everyone else is better than you.