Two people had inherited land and each wanted to use it to set up a settlement. Barren land that they were legally entitled to — though they still they needed government permission to actually build on it. So they had to travel to the distant capital to speak to the parliament.
One of them immediately made their way to the capital, but was met with envy and mistrust. And so they struggled for several years to discuss with the ministers, who repeatedly asked why they wanted to do this or that with the inherited land. They had beautiful models made of their vision of a city, all in the hope of convincing parliament of their plan.
All this resistance cost them a lot of time and energy. To not be apart for so long their family even moved to the capital with them. They often felt alone and as if everyone was against them. Corruption and malice gnawed away at their confidence. Though there was a handful of companions who really supported this family.
When the parliament finally ruled in their favor, the person moved back to the land they actually had been legally entitled to from the beginning. Their family stood by them, but had also suffered from those experiences in the capital. Bitterness and mistrust had set in and weren't easy to dispel from their lives.
But in the end they had been proved right, had been steadfast and refused to be beaten. Now they could begin to build their garden and their city.
The other person and their family decided to cultivate the barren land first, planting it with flowers and trees. So that their future home would be beautiful already once they returned from the capital. This took time and the family settled nearby. Envious people and enemies also appeared who questioned their family's right to build and plant there. Others wanted to steal parts of the land from them. In the end, that is why recognition by parliament was ultimately necessary: in order to protect the inheritance.
As that person then departed for the capital, they did not hurry but packed some flower bulbs and seeds, to plant them along the path. On the journey, many people saw them planting flowers which sparked quite some conversations.
By the time they arrived in the capital, their flowers were already well-known in the city. Some members of parliament had even taken a vacation on the family's land and admired the sea of flowers that had sprung up. Now this person stood before them and officially asked for the right to manage their inheritance.
So when they had both reached their goal and been justified, when they had both returned and were allowed to develop their respective pieces of land: Which of the two families will have gained more on the way, which will have lost more? Whose land has lain fallow for longer? Who may have experienced more struggle, suffering and mistrust? And who brought light and joy into the lives of many people before the construction work on their town even began?
© 2024 Max Weber