An old rooster was pecking around his home for food when he spotted something shining in the grass. Excitedly, he went to go and claim it as his own. It was a single, smooth pearl, which had probably been lost on the farm long ago. He wondered how valuable the pearl would be to his farmer, and said: “You might be very precious to men, but I would rather have a single kernel of corn than a whole basket of pearls.” He discarded the pearl to continue looking for food, as ‘precious’ things are only precious to those who can prize them.
