I just posted this on BA's thread, where I promised/threatened to post it on my own, so here it is... a Buddhist parable that has been giving me a lot of food for thought over the past few days...
THE FARMER
There was a farmer who had a beautiful mare. One day she got loose and ran away with a herd of wild horses.
The farmer’s neighbor said, “Oh, what bad luck!” To which the farmer replied, “What's good, what's bad - who knows?”
Some time passed.
One day the mare returned and it soon became clear that she was going to give birth to a foal.
The neighbor said, “Oh, what good luck!” To which the farmer replied, “What's good, what's bad - who knows?”
The mare gave birth to a strong colt and the colt grew fast.
Some time passed and the colt was ready to be trained. The farmer’s son began to train the colt and one day fell off and broke his leg.
The neighbor said, “Oh, what bad luck!” To which the farmer replied, “What's good, what's bad - who knows?”
Some time passed.
There was a war and the army came around looking for young men to be soldiers. Because the farmer’s son had broken his leg and walked now with a bad limp, he was not taken to fight. Instead he stayed home, cared for the farmer as he grew old, and lived to a ripe old age himself.
What's good, what's bad - who knows?
Whatever happens in our lives, we're the ones who decide what's good and what's bad (or who just wait and see). If something seems bad, maybe we simply need to change our approach. Sometimes the worst-seeming things push us to exactly where we need most to go.
