Clever Peter

Ever since Peter was a young boy in school, it was evident to all who knew him that he was very clever. He was the kind of boy, who, when asked a question, always had an answer. And most of the time, he was right.
Peter’s cleverness won him the approval of his teachers. It won him the awe and respect of his peers. With his cleverness, Peter won spelling bees, debating contests, and several years later, a scholarship to a prestigious university. At that university, Peter won the attention of a lovely young woman with clever banter. 
One day they got married. They had two sons. Both Peter and his wife hoped that their young sons had inherited Peter’s cleverness. 

Peter had a well paying job. He spent most of his time at work or in his study at home. His colleagues didn’t often bother him; they respected his cleverness and let him concentrate in peace. His family also mostly left him alone. Over time, they had come to accept that his hands were full; because of this they understood that he couldn’t properly embrace his wife, or pat his sons on the back. His hands were too full to help with the dishes. They understood that he was a busy man, and so clever, but every once in a while they would try to include him in family activities.

When the boys were nine and eleven, Peter’s wife somehow convinced him that they needed a family trip to the beach. She made a reservation at a hotel by the Pacific Ocean. The reservation was for five nights. The photographs of the beach in the ad showed white sand and turquoise waters.
Peter read on the plane while his wife slept in the seat beside him. Behind them, their sons entertained each other but mostly stayed quiet, out of respect for their father. As soon as they arrived at the hotel, the two boys and their mother changed into their swimsuits and went straight to the beach.
Peter stayed in the hotel room for the first two days of the vacation; the fancy hotel room had a big desk and he needed to get some work done.

On the third day he looked out of the window and saw one of his sons doing a handstand, half underwater. His wife and his other son were watching. His wife’s mouth was open and she was laughing. The sand and water looked just like they had in the ad, and sunlight was reflected, golden on the water’s surface. Peter stood for a few minutes watching and then changed into his swimsuit.
He went outside, and walked across the sand. Its grains were fine and warm between his toes. Peter entered the cool water and when it reached his shoulders, he started swimming toward his family. They had swum out further, and were happily bobbing in the waves. They were facing the open ocean, and they didn’t see him approaching from the shore. He kicked his legs and inched forward, but suddenly realized that his hands felt heavier than bricks. He couldn’t move his arms, and tiredness overtook his entire body. Peter drowned in the turquoise waters, the anchor of his cleverness his only companion.

"Sell your cleverness and buy bewilderment."
- Jalal Ud-Din Rumi