A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how things were so hard for her. She did not know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up. She was tired of fighting and struggling. It seemed as soon as one problem was solved a new one arose. Her mother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots with water.
In the first, she placed carrots, the second she placed eggs, and the last she placed ground coffee beans. She let them sit and boil without saying a word. In about twenty minutes she turned off the burners.
She fished the carrots out and placed them in a bowl. She pulled the eggs out and placed them in a bowl. Then she ladled the coffee out and placed it in a bowl.
Turning to her daughter, she asked, "tell me what you see?" Her daughter replied, "Carrots, eggs and coffee."
She brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they were soft. She then asked her to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard-boiled egg. Finally, she asked her to sip the coffee. The daughter smiled as she tasted its rich aroma.
The daughter then asked, "What's the point, mother?"
Her mother explained that each of these objests had faced the same adversity-boiling water- but each reacted differently. The carrot went in strong, hard and unrelenting. However after being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak. The egg had been fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior. But after sitting through the boiling water, its inside became hardened. The gound coffee beans were unique, however. After they were in the boiling water they had changed the water.
"Which are you?" she asked her daughter. "When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?"
"Are you the carrot that seems strong, but with pain and adversity, do you wilt and become soft and lose your strength?"
"Are you the egg that starts with a malleable heart but changes with the heat? Do you have a fluid spirit but after death, a breakup, a financial hardship or some other trial, do you become hardened and stiff? Does your shell look the same but on the inside do you become bitter and tough with a stiff spirit and a hardened heart?"
"Or are you like the coffee bean, actually changing the hot water, the very circumstance that brings the pain? When the water gets hot, it realeases the fragrance and flavor. If you are like the bean, when things are at their worst, you get better and change the situation around you. When the hours are at their darkest and trials are at their greatest, do you elevate to another level?"
How do you handle adversity? |
