Trishka was a Russian peasant. One day, he noticed that his Caftan, or long-skirted gown, was torn at the elbows. It was simple, he thought. He cut off a quarter of each sleeve, and patched it on the elbows. The elbows looked fine now, but his arms had lost a quarter of their length. Everyone looked at him and laughed. So, Trishka said to himself, ‘I am not a fool and I can make everything right again. All I need to do is to make the sleeves as long as they were before. Oh, Trishka is a genius!’ So, Trishka cut off the skirts of his Caftan. He, then, used them to lengthen his sleeves. Trishka was delighted. But now, his Caftan looked like a waistcoat. They are so many people in the world whose life is like Trishka’s Caftan. In the hope of getting out of debt, they borrow from Peter to pay Paul.
Trishka’s Caftan
