Learning to choose
Saint Antão was living in the desert, when a young man came to him:
- Father, I sold all my belongings and gave to the poor. I kept only a few things in order to survive here. I want you to teach me the way to salvation. 
Saint Antão asked the young man to sell the few things he had kept and, with the money, to buy meat in town. He was to return with the meat tied to his body.
The young man obeyed. On his way back, he was attacked by dogs and falcons, who wanted a piece of the meat.
- I am back - said the young man, showing his scratched, bitten body, and his clothes in rags. Why did you tell me to do that?
- To show that what you brought from your past, is of no use in your present. When you must choose a new path, do not bring old experiences with you. Those who strike out afresh, but who attempt to retain a little of the old life, end up torn apart by their own memories.