A Buddhist parable:
One concerns a farmer who wakes up to find that his horse has run off.
The neighbors come by and say, “Too bad. Such awful luck.”
The farmer says, “Maybe.”
The next day the horse returns with a few other horses. The neighbor congratulates the farmer on his reversal of fortune.
“Maybe,” the farmer says.
When his son tries to ride one of the new horses, he breaks his leg, and the neighbors offer condolences.
“Maybe,” the farmer says.
And the next day, when army officials come to draft the son – and don’t take him because of his broken leg – everyone is happy.
“Maybe,” the farmer says.
This parable is beautiful in it’s simplicity and surrender to the universe. I wonder if I could be attached to something so detached. I don’t know. Maybe.
In my personal life, I learned from my wise friends who I am so grateful for their patience with me.... We have many choices on how to react to situations, people, circumstances, etc that are in our face every day. I have learned to try to be an observer and to react by saying Oh. The slippery slope comes when we start to attach emotion and our egos get invested in what is happening around us and then sometimes, it all can spiral out of control.
Now, I try to take a breath and say, Oh.
My friend Fraya says,"I have heard this parable many times over the years, and it always strikes a chord within me. This translates into my life as always looking for the blessing in any situation, no matter how it may look on the surface. There ARE blessings for us to be gathered from every experience, even though we might have to wait for some time to realize them. But they are there.
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