Obstacles Along The Way

As I ran yesterday I noticed something we have probably all witnessed a hundred times. The traffic on the main road was slowing, almost to a standstill at some stages. It could be for many reasons. Sheer volume of traffic can often be the case. Or it can be caused by those who are trying to jump the queue and forcing their way back into the traffic further on. Selfish actions may on some occasions help one at the cost of the many. It was Katherine who earlier drew my attention to those whose lives as so important that even passing a car or two makes them feel so much better.

As I approached the bottleneck I could see the cause of the problem. On the roadway was something that had fallen from the back of a lorry. Two lanes of traffic had to push together into one lane to avoid the hazard. This in turn slowed down those behind. Nerves were getting frayed, horns were being hit. Chaos abounded.

Now here is the really interesting thing. I was able to walk out into the road and lift the obstacle to the side with very little effort. Of course my run was not nearly as important as there getting to their place of work, or their meetings.

Did anybody take a second to thank me? I will leave you to work out the very difficult answer to that question. It would have taken any one of the drivers two minutes to put on hazard lights, get out of the car and do as I had done. Far to simple I suppose.

This reminded me of the story of the King and the boulder.

In ancient times, a King had a boulder placed on a roadway. Then he hid himself and watched to see if anyone would remove the huge rock. Some of the king's wealthiest merchants and courtiers came by and simply walked around it. Many loudly blamed the King for not keeping the roads clear, but none did anything about getting the stone out of the way.

Then a peasant came along carrying a load of vegetables. Upon approaching the boulder, the peasant laid down his burden and tried to move the stone to the side of the road. After much pushing and straining, he finally succeeded. After the peasant picked up his load of vegetables, he noticed a purse lying in the road where the boulder had been. The purse contained many gold coins and a note from the King indicating that the gold was for the person who removed the boulder from the roadway.

That day the peasant learned a lesson that some of us never seem to learn.

Every obstacle presents an opportunity to improve our condition.

I can think of so many times in my life when I thought that things could never be worse than they were. From the difficulties lessons were learned and experiences gained. Some small; some momentous, but each obstacle a point of learning.

I will say a bit more about this on my other blog. I Think It is Almost There

What Kind of Person Am I

I am always overwhelmed when somebody takes the time to comment on my words. When somebody takes the time to email and say that my words had been useful and then said why I am at a loss.


This happened yesterday on a day when few people commented on this blog. Maybe I should listen to that friend who keeps telling me to stop looking at the number of comments. Never mind the quantity feel the quality.

Forgive me for dwelling just a little bit more. Yes it was difficult being told I might never speak again especially when my job depended on my voice and I had no other talents. But it is a case of the carrots the eggs or the coffee beans. Let me explain.

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. First she fished the carrots out and placed them in a bowl. Then she pulled the eggs out and placed them in a bowl. Lastly she ladled the coffee out and placed it in a 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 flavour. 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?

Oh dear hope that is not too heavy.

This blog is linked to my other. The Dam

The Farmer and His Mule

Two weeks today will have been married for forty years. Any such event brings with it many questions. Yesterday I was being asked by my family what I wanted to do to celebrate the event. My initial thought was why not wait another ten years and see what happens. I have an amazing gift for procrastination. I did manage to avoid having to make a decision yesterday but the process makes you stop and wonder about the forty years and the ones spent prior to marriage. I found myself wondering about the memorable moments and what effects they had had.


I discovered a strange thing. The moments that had most changed my life were those moments that given a choice I might have avoided. An example, the time I was forced not to speak for six months. Six months when the silence brought isolation, almost. Being on the edge of most conversations, a listener, rather than an active participant. To then be told this might have to be the way it would be for the rest of my life, and all that meant.

Now in reflection I have discovered this was a turning point, but also a very deep and meaningful moment. It was a mule moment. Let me explain by sharing with you the story of the farmer and his mule.

One day the mule fell into the farmer’s well. The farmer heard the mule making a terrible noise in its fear and desperation. After carefully assessing the situation, he sympathized with the mule, but decided that neither the mule nor the well was worth the trouble of saving. Instead, he called his neighbours together, told them what had happened, and enlisted them to help haul dirt to bury the old mule in the well and put him out of his misery.

Initially the old mule was hysterical! But as the farmer and his neighbors continued shoveling and the dirt hit his back, a thought struck him. It suddenly dawned on him that every time a shovel load of dirt landed on his back, He would shake it off and step up!

This he did, blow after blow. “Shake it off and step up…shake it off and step up…shake it off and step up!” He repeated to encourage himself. No matter how painful the blows, or how distressing the situation seemed, the old mule fought panic and just kept right on and on shaking it off and stepping up!

It wasn’t long before the old mule, battered and exhausted, stepped triumphantly over the wall of that well!

What seemed like it would bury him actually helped him . . . all because of the manner in which he handled his adversity.

This is the way of Tao!

Face our problems and respond to them positively, and refuse to give in to panic, bitterness, or self-pity. Find that inner being. From that six months I realize I had my first taste of art, and much more.

This blog is linked to my other;  The Coastal Path