Inspirational Stories: A Carrot, an Egg and a Coffee Bean
My college years as a psychology student taught me one very basic thing:
Analyze yourself first before analyzing others.
Here's a simple exercise in helping you know yourself better most especially
in dealing with adversities...so are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee
bean?
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 that, 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 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 do you see?".
"Carrots, eggs, and coffee," the young woman replied. The mother
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?" the mother 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, or a financial hardship, 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 flavour.
Me? A tomato! Just kidding. Honestly, I tend to be sometimes a carrot - over
confident - and sometimes an egg - plummeting enthusiasm.
Good thing is, I am often aware of what state I am when I face adversities
(thanks to hanzst-positive-training-program) so I usually step back and
assess, and look at the adversity at a different perspective. And so
with a little self pulling, I become a coffee bean, making the best out of an
adversity and squeeze its beauty!
So so are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?
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