Teamwork story: The Stone soup effect

Once upon a time, there was a wise old man who lived his life on the road. Sometimes he would travel for days without meeting anyone, and other times he would have company. Most of all he loved visiting new places and meeting new people. In his lifetime he had seen many things, meet many people, and found himself in different situations. All of which enriched him with many experiences and wisdom. One day the old man came to a small village he had never been to before. Near the center of the village, he met a group of people. So he introduced himself. “I’m a simple traveler, looking for a hot meal and a safe place to sleep,” The villagers humbly replied, “We’d be glad to offer you a place to sleep, but we have very little food. Our crops were very poor this year, and there’s not much to eat in the whole village. Most of us are just barely getting by with what we have for ourselves.” “I’m sorry to hear that,” said the traveler. “But you don’t need to worry about giving me any food. I already have everything I need. In fact, I was thinking of making some stone soup to share with all of you. All I need is a large soup pot, some wood for the fire, and some water.”

“Stone soup? What’s that? We’ve never heard of stone soup. You can’t cook stone and get soup… or can you,” the villagers looked amazed at the old man. “Oh, it’s wonderful,” said the old man. “Best soup I’ve ever tasted. If you bring me a pot and some water, I’ll make some for all of us.” And so the villagers rushed back to their homes. When they returned, one was carrying a large soup pot, another had wood for a fire, and others brought water. When the fire was going and the water had begun to boil, the old man took out a small silk pouch. With great ceremony, he reached in and pulled out a smooth, round stone. He carefully dropped the stone into the boiling water. The villagers watched eagerly as the old man began to slowly stir the pot, sniffing the aroma and licking his lips in anticipation. “I do like a tasty stone soup,” he said. “But a stone soup with cabbage that’s something really special.”

“I might be able to find a bit of cabbage,” one of the villagers said. And off she went to her house, returning with a small cabbage she had stored away in her pantry. “Wonderful!” said the old man, as he added the cabbage to the pot. “This reminds me of the time I had stone soup with cabbage and a bit of salted beef. It was unbelievably good.” After a moment of silence, the village butcher spoke up. “I know where we can get a bit of salted beef,” and off he went to his shop to get it. When he returned, the old man added the beef to the soup pot and continued to stir. After some time of stirring and cooking the soup everyone in the village could smell it. And when the old man saw how everyone could hardly wait to taste the soup he calmly suggested, “Can you imagine what this soup would taste like if we had a bit of onion…and perhaps a few potatoes…and a carrot or two…and some mushrooms. Oh, this would be a meal fit for royalty.”

And before he knew it, the soup pot was filled to the brim with vegetables of all kinds. The villagers suddenly had so much food to share that it was more than enough. Carrots and potatoes, mushrooms and onions, turnips and green beans, beets, and celery, they brought it all. Not only that, but the village baker came out with some fresh bread and butter. As the soup simmered slowly over the fire, the wonderful aroma began to waft over the villagers. And they began to relax and talk together, sharing songs and stories and jokes. When the soup was finally done, the old man started pouring the soup into bowls, and they all shared a delicious meal together. There was more than enough for everyone to eat their fill. Afterward, they all declared that it was the best soup they had ever tasted. The mayor of the village pulled the old man aside, and quietly offered him a great deal of money for the magic stone, but the old man refused to sell it. He told the mayor that it was his responsibility to make the next soup without the stone with all the ingredients that they had today. And that he must find a way how to get the villagers to work together to make it together like they did today. And if they would do so then one day the old man would return and give them the special stone to make stone soup again. After that, the old man went to sleep.

The next morning, he awoke early and packed up his belongings. As he was leaving the village, he passed by a group of children playing at the side of the road. He handed the youngest one the silk pouch containing the stone, and he whispered, “It was not the stone that performed the magic. It was all of us together.”