Life Is Not Problem-Free

In the midst of our conversation the other day, during the birthday of my brother-in-law Simon Boiser (the spouse of my sister, Gretel), my siblings and I and other relatives shared how problems in life at times overwhelm us. We talked about unpaid bills, health problems, maids’ behavior and many other things. I told them that we are not alone with our struggles. In fact, if you look at the social media posts, there are lots of people everywhere who are also struggling with problems like ours.

Problems are universal; life is not problem-free. As one problem is solved, another problem crops up. We just have to bear in mind that any storm does not last long – “This too shall pass.”

There was a story about a woman who went to her doctor and asked him if there was a place in this world that was problem-free. The doctor nodded and told her there was. He asked her if she was interested to see the place. She jumped with joy and asked him to take her there. “This is it,” the doctor said. It was a cemetery. Of course, the woman didn’t want to be there!

It is our choice how we react when life throws us a curb ball. Problems are inevitable and we just have to learn to live with it. Which reminds me of a story of a young woman who went to her mother and told her how things were so hard for her. She has gotten tired of fighting and struggling; there seems no end to it all.

Taking her daughter to the kitchen, the mother filled three pots with water. In the first pot over a stove, she placed the carrot, in the second pot, she placed the egg, and in the third pot, she placed the ground coffee bean. She let these sit, and after 20 minutes she turned off the burner. She fished the carrot out, pulled out the egg, and placed them in a bowl. Then, she ladled the coffee out, and placed it in another bowl. Turning to her daughter, the mother asked, “Tell me, what do you see?” The daughter replied, “Carrot, egg, and coffee.”  She brought her daughter closer and asked her to feel the carrot.  The daughter noticed that it got soft. Then she asked her to take the egg and pulled off the shell. The daughter observed that the egg became hard. Finally, she smelled and sipped the coffee, and smiled as she savored the sweet aroma.  She asked, “What’s the point, mother?”

The mother explained that each object had faced the same adversity – the boiling water – but each acted differently. “So, it’s like us,” she pointed out. “We react a certain way when adversity knocks at our door.”

How do we respond? The carrot was strong and unrelenting, but after being subjected to boiling water, it softened. The egg had been fragile, but after it sat through the boiling water, its hardened.  The ground coffee bean was unique. After being placed on the boiling water, it had improved its flavor.

Which one are you like – carrot, egg or ground coffee bean?