Monday, June 9, 2008

The Carrot, Coffee beans & Egg









salam,
I think I am gonna become a Story teller !!!! But I can't help it. I come across some beautiful stories, I just cant keep them for myself. Here is another Nice story, very beautifully told and has lot of meaning to it. And after I read these stories I get this goody goody kinda feeling whichI fee I must share it with you all.
I really wish many of my blogger friends read the stories I put in here coz even if its for a while ,they make us see a perspective which we often fail to see in certain circumstances. Its like getting a view of the other side of the coin and make us wonder !!!
Read on and enjoy and pls do let those comments coming in coz I wanna knw.
And by the way I am a Coffee Bean !!!
The Carrot, Coffee beans & Egg
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 boil. In the first she placed carrots, in the second she placed eggs, and in 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 you see." "Carrots, eggs, and coffee," she replied.Her mother brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they were soft. The mother then asked the daughter to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard boiled egg. Finally, the mother asked the daughter 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. 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 a 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 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 hour is the darkest and trials are their greatest, do you elevate yourself to another level? How do you handle adversity? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean??

5 comments:

mayG said...

what an absolutely amazing thought... thanks for sharing it friend.. i think it was Allah's will that I was led here on one of the toughest, darkest days of my life..
bless you for sharing this wisdom and making a difference without even realizing!
I am printing this out to help me re-think my strategies for dealing with tough situations.. bless you again..

SOLITARY PRINCESS said...

salam,
jazakhallhu khair sister for ur appreciation. It was Allah's will that my story helped u. Indeed His ways are Unique we never knw through whom and how he would guide us and answer some of our most difficult questions in life. I am glad that I Was made a zariya to make u realise some important things.
keep visiting my space and comments are most welcome.

Anonymous said...

A good story with equally good moral.... :-)

Maryam

Radhika said...

Hey Sweety..

It's me..
The story was very inspiring and I read it exactly at the time when I needed the most.. I am going thru some tough time now... and I was thinking why is it always me.. why do I have to struggle so much.. always adversity for me etc etc. But I have learnt a lesson, I need to change my outlook and look at the world around me differently and one day I am sure I'll get there.. Thank you so much for posting it.
Love Radhi.

SOLITARY PRINCESS said...

Maryam: Salam, i know some stories teach us a lot. glad u liked it.

Radhi: I am really glad u enjoyed and benefited from it dear. do keep visisting my blog, I am looking forward to posting more of such life changing stuff.