Which are you?

[Tink]

A carrot, an egg, or a cup of coffee?

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
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?

[judy]

That's lovely! I think I'm a bit of each.

[AngieDoogles]

How sweet Tink. I think we'd all like to believe that we are like the coffee, but unfortunately, I'm probably more often the carrot or egg...

[Mandy]

This made me smile I would like to think i am coffee... but i'm a bit of everything.