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[Zues126]

G, I don't feel like posting on my thread tonight (although I will Sunny, thanks for checking in!) For some reason it's easier for me just to reply to others.

A man that traveled the world to see the Buddha. He finally got an audience, and proceeded to tell the Buddha all about his problems. His family problems. His crops. His finances. Etc. Buddha calmly nodded.

Finally the Buddha said "I can't help you". The man was upset and asked what he meant. Buddha replied "Everyone has problems. 83 problems to be exact. And there's nothing you can do about it. If you work hard you can solve one, but another will appear in it's place. For example, you're going to lose all of your loved ones at some point, we'll all die. Now that's a problem no one can do anything about."

So the man was furious and asked what the point of being wise was!

Buddha told him he could help with his 84th problem...the desire to not have any problems.

Copied from a post from a year ago, excerpt from a book I read.

I am not on any type of spiritual kick that I'm aware of. But the last 30 months life has thrown some pretty hard problems at me. Some of them will make my life incredibly challenging for years. Others simply can't be solved.

And this has forced me to decide to enjoy what I can anyway. This one story has been my mantra and has helped me find some calm in the middle of the storm of life.

Yes, I'm sick to my stomach about going to work tomorrow morning. I have been fighting for my sales job every day for a year now. I think I'm going to lose the fight, but I have to keep on smiling and trying to make each customer interaction a positive one. And I don't think I can replace my income. When I get home I'm so demoralized it makes me want to curl up in a ball and never wake up, but my kids want to shove scribbles they made in my face and have me put them on my refrigerator so I have to suck it up and stuff my pain some more. My house purchase got cancelled. I gained a few pounds and was down to 2 suits, and one of them split open. I struggle to get out of bed in the morning. I only get to play pool once a month, even though every time I play it amazes me I don't do this for a living. My kids want to do nothing but watch Youtube videos.

But, I have a job to go to today. I have food to eat for tomorrow. I have kids shoving scribbles in my face. Some of them actually look pretty cool when your inner bleeding blots up a little. Thufir Hawat just told the Baron why the Emperor really moved against House Atreides. And while I have to nudge them to turn off the Kindle's, my daughters are shooting pool balls in like real pool players, and my daughter is playing some good chess. And reading on her own. And we are watching The Voice singing show where they are learning about different types of music. And I get to eat a fancy lunch now and then and put it on my corporate card.

In the end, it's life. It's painful and difficult, and funny and sweet. We can't remove the hard parts. All we can do is not allow the pain and difficulty to sour the funny and sweet.

The funny thing is that the things that are the most powerful also seem the most cliche, trite, and insufferable. Ah, well. Sorry for that. But maybe the fact that these words are both so inspirational and obnoxious at the same time is just this principle displaying itself in the very breath it's spoken.

Now y'all know why my doctor gives me pills to keep the crazy symptoms down. You should have seen me 5 years ago. Sorry XW...