A kettle cannot balance itself on one stone; on three, however, it does.

A kettle cannot balance itself on one stone; on three, however, it does.

In a small village at the foot of a hill lived a boy named Sameer. One day, his mother asked him to cook rice while she went to visit a neighbour.

Sameer was excited. “I can do this easily,” he said.

He brought a metal kettle, filled it with water and rice, and went outside to make a fire. He found one large stone and placed the kettle on top of it.

“Perfect,” he said proudly.

He lit the fire underneath and waited. But soon, the kettle began to wobble. The water inside shook, and suddenly—clang!—the kettle fell over, spilling everything into the fire.

“Oh no!” Sameer cried.

Just then, his grandfather, who had been watching quietly, walked over. “What happened?” he asked.

“The kettle won’t stay still,” Sameer said. “Maybe the stone is not strong enough.”

His grandfather smiled. “The problem is not strength, but balance.”

He picked up two more stones and placed them carefully in a triangle. Then he set the kettle on top.

“Try again,” he said.

Sameer lit the fire once more. This time, the kettle stood steady. The water boiled calmly, and the rice cooked perfectly.

Sameer’s eyes widened. “It works! But why?”

His grandfather said, “A kettle cannot balance itself on one stone. On three, however, it does. Three points give it support.”

Sameer thought for a moment. “So… more support makes things stable?”

“Yes,” his grandfather replied. “And this is not just about kettles.”

He continued, “In life, you also need more than one support. A person who depends on only one thing—like strength, money, or luck—can easily fall. But with three supports, like hard work, wisdom, and patience, life becomes steady.”

Sameer nodded slowly, understanding the lesson.

That evening, when his mother returned, she was pleased to see the perfectly cooked rice.

And Sameer never forgot what he had learned—not just how to balance a kettle, but how to balance life itself.