- Joined
- Feb 19, 2001
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- 34,872
- Purraise
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CUP OF COFFEE
You will never look at a cup of coffee the same way again.
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 and placed each on a high fire. Soon the
pots came to a boil. 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 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 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 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 does it mean, 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?
You will never look at a cup of coffee the same way again.
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 and placed each on a high fire. Soon the
pots came to a boil. 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 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 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 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 does it mean, 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?
