The choices we make

A senior member of my company narrated this joke today. Thought I'll share it with all.

"In Calcutta, my home town, there once lived a professor of mathematics. People appreciated his humility and also his vast experience in the field. He was a man of many skills and was also awarded with a medal from the chief minister.

Every year, somewhere around September, he would take a week off from college; go all the way to the hills of Darjeeling to a small cottage of his in the woods. In peace and surrounding tranquility, he would pray to lord Shiva for hours. A strict schedule of just 1 meal a day (comprising vegetable and soup), waking up at 5:00 in the morning and meditation for 8 hours - was enough to break anyone, but the professor. True to his faith, the professor spent 6 such days in the cabin.

On the 7th and final day, the lord appeared before the professor. The lord's smiling face was greeted by the professor's ecstatic amazement.

The lord said, "Thank you professor, for in these modern times too .. you have prayed for me. You are indeed a wonderful human being. And in return, I would like to grant you a wish. You can choose anyone of the following : 
a) Wealth (you & your generations will never have to earn .. ever)
b) Beauty (you will have the most beautiful woman in the world as a wife)
c) Knowledge (you will be bestowed all the knowledge in the world)

The professor being a humble man, thanked the god and didn't want any of those wishes. But lord Shiva insisted. The professor had a choice to make. He said, "Hmm ... god, I am a professor and Saraswati is the most important thing to me ... I choose option c) - knowledge"

To which God said, "Granted". God was just about to leave for his heavenly abode, when suddenly the professor shouted, "Oh lord .. wait lord .. wait". The lord reappeared and asked, "What is the matter, professor?" ... and the professor meekly said, "I am sorry lord, can I have wealth please?"