“Should I try changing?” asked the young man. “Should I risk it?”
“Yes, now’s your chance,” the old man said.
“Then why don’t you?” asked the young man.
“Because I’m old. It’s easier for you to take the risk. You have many years ahead of you to be able to correct mistakes you make now.”
The young man wasn’t relieved. “Strange, I thought it would be easier for you. You have less time ahead of you than I do. You won’t have to deal with your mistakes for years to come, the way I will.”
“No,” said the old man. “It would be easier for me if not for the years I’ve already spent without change. It’s too difficult now.”
“Hmm,” sighed the young man, and the old man agreed.
So neither changed, neither took the risk, the young man for fear of wasting the future, the old man for fear that he’d wasted the past.
