Three Feet Away

During the gold rush, a man from Ohio traveled to California. It had taken him months to get there. He had to get a claim and register it and buy tools before he could start mining. The Ohioan had been mining for months. Finally after all the hard work and finding nothing quit his claim. He was just plain tired and worn out and he couldn't go on. He sold his claim and equipment to another man who resumed mining where he had left off.

The new miner was advised by a surveyor that there was gold only three feet away, again three feet away from where the first miner stopped digging.

The surveyor was right, which means the first miner was a mere three feet away from striking gold before he quit.

The Moral:

When things start to get hard, try to persevere through the adversity. Many people give up because the work becomes too difficult, tedious, or tiresome–but often, we're just 3 feet away.