The Compass of Misleading Directions

A traveler bought a compass that never pointed north. Instead, it aimed toward forgotten fears, abandoned dreams, unresolved regrets. Frustrated, he threw it away — but curiosity made him retrieve it moments later. Following its strange guidance, he visited people he had wronged, paths he had abandoned, hopes he had buried. By the time he reached the compass's final destination, he realized it pointed nowhere but inward. When he looked down again, the needle quietly aligned with true north.