The Clever Monk

Once upon a time, there was a family that was always unhappy. Their neighbors were unhappy too because of the constant arguments coming from their house. People went out of their way to avoid passing in front of their home. The trouble started when Mrs. Selma's eldest son got married to a woman named Sweetie. Sweetie's married life was in trouble, and she desperately wanted to fix it.

One day, Sweetie heard about a wise monk who lived near the mountains and could help her. The very next day, she went to the monk and said, "Dear monk, please help me. My mother-in-law doesn't like me, no matter how hard I try, she always finds fault in everything I do. She constantly causes conflicts between me and my husband, and it's causing problems in our marriage." She poured out her troubles to the monk.

The monk interrupted her and said, "I understand your problems." He handed her a small container with some salt and instructed, "You must eat a pinch of this salt every morning when you wake up. After consuming it, you can only speak ten times in a day, or it will lose its effect."

Sweetie returned home with hope, thinking her problems would soon be over. However, she didn't realize how challenging this task would be. The next day, following the monk's instructions, she took the medicine and began preparing breakfast for everyone. Her mother-in-law and husband woke up and sat down to eat. Every dish was overly salty because Sweetie had consumed too much salt and couldn't taste it properly. Her mother-in-law noticed it first and then her husband, and they both shouted at Sweetie. True to the monk's instructions, she remained silent and didn't argue. 

Every day, she continued to make similar mistakes, and every time they scolded her, she stayed quiet.

After a few days, something remarkable happened. Instead of shouting at her, her husband and mother-in-law began to show her a lot of love and affection. Overjoyed, Sweetie went back to the monk to thank him and ask what had brought about this change.

The monk replied, "The problem was your constant arguments, and the solution was a bit of salt and the discipline to control your tongue."