A man had three sons and he loved them all very much. He had no money, but the house in which he lived was a good one.
“To which of my three boys shall I leave my house?” thought the old man. “They are all good sons to me and I want to be good to them, too.”
Of course, he could sell the house and then give the money to the boys, but nobody wanted to do this. Not only the three boys, but their father, their grandfather, and their great-grandfather had lived in it.
It was their home; they knew and loved every room, every window, every corner of it, and they could not sell it to other people.
So the old man said to the boys, “All of you must go out into the world. Each can choose a trade and learn it well. In a year we shall meet here together, and he who has learned his trade best shall have the house. Do you agree?”
“Yes,” said his sons, “that’s right.”
And the eldest said, “I think I will become a builder. That is the kind of work I like best.”
“And I,” said the second, “have always wanted to make clothes.”
“And I,” said the third, “want most of all to become a gardener.”
They agreed to come back in a year, and then they all went away.
Soon people began to talk about a young builder, a young tailor and a young gardener whose work was very good. Their father was glad to hear that.
When the father saw his sons again a year later, he said, “You all have learned your trades very well. The house is yours, I hope you can live here all together.”
As none of them wanted the house all to himself, they all agreed and lived happily together for many, many years.
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