Sunday, September 24, 2017

Chinese Fable and Life Lesson

The following fable was on my mind this morning because I had a strange dream. When I doze off again early morning, I tend to remember dreams, especially when something like the phone ringing wakes me up. Most of them are a mix-mash and don't make sense to me. This one did.

Also Friday night I gave a young man a ride to and from an event -- a man with a lot of wisdom for his years. In one of our many conversations, I told him I didn't know why I had to experience all the crap I'd been through -- but life is good now. I also said I'm 61 and if I live another 30 years there is still time to become a teacher/mentor to many people. He encouraged me to go for it!

In the dream, a friend of mine and I go to see a female psychic with blond hair below her shoulders. The woman tells my friend she has water retention and then, harshly, "GET OVER YOUR STUFF! There are a LOT of people waiting for you to help them." My friend begins to cry and the psychic holds her for a long hug. She was still holding her when my phone rang and I woke up. My friend has been experiencing one bad event after another. She is stressed out and worn down. I've been there.

I know the message in the dream is for me as well. And this morning it came in clear -- and I hope I remember -- that experiences are neither good or bad. Just experiences. Learn to be an observer and don't get caught up in the drama. 

I tried to tell myself this yesterday after I returned to my local grocery store for the third time to get one of their Natural rotisserie chickens (no antibiotics or hormones) and was told, "I'm sorry, we don't have any." 

That first day, I asked specifically for them to write down what time they would be ready so I could go down and get one when they were first put out. To compensate for the inconvenience, I was given a coupon for a free one -- worth almost $10. I made a mental note to add this to my Gratitude & Miracles journal. 

The next day I returned at one of those times and was told they didn't have any. And the times I had been given were not correct and I had them write down the times that were.

The third day, yesterday, I lost my cool. I returned on one of those designated times to be told they didn't have any. I was told I should have come earlier. I had to ask them to call me when they had one ready as this option was not previously offered.

I hadn't experienced that level of anger in a very long time. I searched through the crevices of my memories for something that would put out my emotional surge. Logically, I knew that instead of thinking how rude they were and how bad the customer service was, to dig up compassion -- I bet they just had a bad day, too. Afterall, we just experienced Hurricane Harvey. And my friend is going through a lot worse right now.

This morning, I had that dream -- with that profound message.

Thus, this morning, I Googled the Chinese fable that had been on my mind -- and I had seen many times -- and was instrumental in me learning how to see life differently.

A farmer had only one horse. One day, his horse ran away. His neighbors said, “I’m so sorry. This is such bad news. You must be so upset.”

The man just said, “We’ll see.”

A few days later, his horse came back with twenty wild horses following. The man and his son corralled all 21 horses. His neighbors said, “Congratulations! This is such good news. You must be so happy!”

The man just said, “We’ll see.”

One of the wild horses kicked the man’s only son, breaking both his legs. His neighbors said, “I’m so sorry. This is such bad news. You must be so upset.”

The man just said, “We’ll see.”

The country went to war, and every able-bodied young man was drafted to fight. The war was terrible and killed every young man, but the farmer’s son was spared since his broken legs prevented him from being drafted. His neighbors said, “Congratulations! This is such good news. You must be so happy!”

The man just said, “We’ll see.”


I hope this post will encourage you as well. Stuff happens -- good and bad -- learn to be an observer and don’t get caught up in the drama. By having these experiences, and learning how to resolve them, we become mentors to others, learn to be resilient, and develop maturity. Then we become other people's teachers.

This is also an example of synchronicity -- when seemingly unrelated events -- if you keep track of them -- turn out to be related afterall!

2 comments:

  1. Isn't it amazing how everything becomes linked when we view the past!

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    Replies
    1. I feel bad for all the people who are younger and haven't figured this out yet. I hope you and I can reach out to enough of them to make a true difference!

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