A young woman came to her mother and told her about her hard life, about how difficult it was for her. She didn't know how to deal with all this. She wanted to give up everything and give up. She's tired of fighting. It seemed that as soon as one of her problems was solved, another immediately appeared.
Her mother took the young woman to the kitchen and filled three pots with water. She put a few carrots in the first one, an egg in the second one, and some ground coffee beans in the third one. She waited until the water in the saucepans boiled and after a few minutes removed them from the heat. The mother took the carrots and eggs out of the pots and put them in separate bowls, and poured the coffee into a cup. Turning to her daughter, who was complaining about life, she asked:
- Tell me, what do you see?
The daughter replied:
— A few carrots, an egg and coffee.
The mother brought her daughter closer and asked her to try the carrots. She tried it and noticed that the carrots were cooked and became soft. The mother asked to break the egg. The daughter did just that. After it was shelled, the daughter saw that it was hard-boiled. Finally, the mother asked to try coffee.
The daughter felt the rich taste and asked:
- Mom, what’s the point?
Her mother explained that all three objects were subjected to the same test - boiling water, but each of them reacted differently: the carrots were hard and strong, but after being placed in boiling water, they became soft. The egg's outer shell protected its internal liquid contents, but after boiling, its insides became solid. And the ground coffee beans, in turn, after being in boiling water, changed the water
- Now, tell me who are you? - the mother asked her daughter. — When you have some difficulty, what do you do? Who are you: a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?
Think about it this way: Which one am I? Am I a carrot that seems tough and strong, but when faced with pain and adversity, I become discouraged and become soft and lose my strength?
Am I an egg with a soft heart that changes when heated? I have a kind and gentle soul, but after grief, a nervous breakdown, or during financial difficulties or other trials, I become hard and tough? My shell looks the same, but inside I am callous, with a harsh character and a hard heart?
Or am I a coffee bean? When the water heats up, the grain releases its smell and taste. If I am like a grain, then when everything is very bad and I have great difficulties, I become different and change the situation around me.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru