A few years ago,my friend Al won the lottery. It changed his life. He did not have a rich family. He was not born with a silver spoon in his mouth. Instead,my friend was always hard up for cash. He did not have much money. And the money he did earn was chicken feed -- very little. Sometimes Al even had to accept handouts,gifts from his family and friends. But do not get me wrong. My friend was not a deadbeat. He was not the kind of person who never paid the money he owed. He simply _ pennies. He was always very careful with the money he spent. In fact,he was often a cheapskate. He did not like to spend money. The worst times were when he was flat broke and had no money at all. One day,Al scraped together a few dollars for a lottery ticket. He thought he would never strike it rich or gain lots of money unexpectedly. But his combination of numbers was chosen and he won the lottery. He hit the jackpot. He won a great deal of money. Al was so excited. The first thing he did was buy a costly new ear. He splurged on the one thing that he normally would not buy. Then he started spending money on unnecessary things. He started to waste it. It was like he had money to burn. He had more money than he needed and it was burning a hole in his pocket so he spent it quickly. When we got together for a meal at a restaurant,Al paid every time. He would always foot the bill,and pick up the tab. He told me the money made him feel like a million dollars. He was very happy. But,Al spent too much money. Soon my friend was down and out again. He had no money left. He was back to being strapped for cash. He had spent his bottom dollar, his very last amount. He did not even build up a nest egg. He had not saved any of the money. I admit I do feel sorry for my friend. He had enough money to live like a king. Instead,he is back to living on a shoestring--a very low budget. Some might say he is penny wise and pound foolish. He is wise about small things,but not about important things. What can we learn from the story of Al?
Keep on and you will succeed one day. Do not pick up the sesame seeds but overlook the watermelons. It is no use crying over spilt milk. No pains, no gains.