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 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, in
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 minuets 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 do you see?"
"Carrots, eggs, and coffee," she replied. She brought her closer and
asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they 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 objects 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 ground 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?"
Think of this: Which am I? Am I the carrot that seems strong, but with
pain and adversity, do I wilt and become soft and lose my strength?
Am I the egg that starts with a malleable heart, but changes with the
heat? Did I have a fluid spirit, but after death, a breakup, a financial
hardship or some other trial, have I become hardened and stiff? Does my
shell look the same, but on the inside am I bitter and tough with a stiff
spirit and a hardened heart?
Or am I like the coffee bean? The bean actually changes the hot water,
the very circumstance that brings the pain. When the water gets hot, it
releases 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 the darkest and
trials are their greatest do you elevate to another level?
How do you handle Adversity?
ARE YOU A CARROT, AN EGG, OR A COFFEE BEAN?
potentially / realistically
A young boy went up to his father and asked, "What is the difference between potentially and realistically?" The father answered, "Go ask your mother if she would sleep with Denzel Washington for a million dollars. Then go ask your sister if she would sleep with Sean Puffy Combs for a million dollars. Come back and tell me what you have learned." So the boy went to his mother and said, "So would you sleep with Denzel Washington for a million dollars? The mother replied, "Of I would! I wouldn't pass up an opportunity like that." The boy then went to his sister and said, "Would you sleep with Puffy for a million dollars?" The girl replied,"Oh my God! I'd be nuts to pass that up!" The boy then thought about it for two or three days and went back to his dad. The father asked him, "Did you find out the difference between potentially and realistically?" The boy replied, "Yes, potentially we're sitting on two million dollars, but realistically we're living with two hoes."