Listen Up Folks...It's Story Time!

I'm going to tell you a story that really helped put "dealing with problems" into perspective for me.  I hope sharing this with you will help you in some way as well! 

There was once a girl who was frustrated, fed up, overwhelmed and on the verge of giving up.  She went to her mother and said, "I'm done!  I can't talk it anymore.  Every time I think I solve one problem, there are a thousand more just waiting in line for me. What do I do?" Well, the mother looked at her, and smiled.  The girl's faced darkened and she yelled, "I'M TELLING YOU I NEED HELP AND YOU'RE SMILING?!"  The mother stayed calm and said, "Follow me into the kitchen." 

There, she took three pots, filled them with water and set them in the stove.  Once the water was boiling, she put carrots in the first pot, eggs in the second and coffee beans in the third.  Now, that hit a nerve.  The daughter shrieked, "I'M FRUSTRATED AND ANGRY AND YOU'RE COOKING!?"  The mom smiled again and motioned for her to wait.  Figuring that she could not do anything else, the daughter waited. 

The mom then indicated that it was done.

She walked up to the first pot and told her daughter to tell her what she saw.  The daughter looked in and said, "Well, the carrots are soft and mushy."  The mom replied, "Yes. That is one type of person.  Those who start out strong and hard, but fall apart and become weak in face of problems and stress."

She moved over the next pot and told her daughter to tell her what she saw.  The daughter looked in and said, "Well, the egg looks the same as it did before but I know it is hardboiled."  The mom replied, "Yes. That is the second type of person.  Those who look and feign that they are the same but have actually hardened on the inside in face of problems and challenges.  They are then unemotional and stolid." 

She then moved over the last pot and told her daughter to tell her what she saw.  The daughter looked in, sniffed, and smiled.  She said, "Ahh, the sweet aroma of coffee." And the mother smiled brightly and said, "Yes, that is the third and last type of person.  Very few are like coffee that can actually use challenges that they are faced with to become better than they were before and shine."

So now tell me, are you carrots, are you eggs, or do you have the incredible ability to be coffee?  I hope you answered or will answer in the future, with confidence, COFFEE!