Instant Wealth

Yutang Lin

Suddenly raised to the top, one's joy boundless.
Lack of merits and ability, yet carry heavy load.
Ants swarm to smell of food, wouldn't disperse.
Bringing troubles to oneself, hard to see through.

Comment:

Many people wish to win lottery, and keep buying lottery tickets. In the rare case of winning a jackpot it would seem that all one's worries are over, and one could live in leisure for the rest of one's life. Nevertheless, after acquiring instant wealth one may be unprepared to manage such a heavy load, or lack the wisdom to make meaningful uses of the wealth. Furthermore, one will have to face all sorts of solicitations from all sides, and could find it burdensome to handle them tactfully. Consequently, winning a jackpot turns out to be just the beginning of falling into a whirlpool of sorrows. Unfortunately, people with this kind of foresight are rare to find.

Written in Chinese on January 23, 2002
Translated on January 25, 2002
El Cerrito, California

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