The Perception Paradox

What you think is good may very well turn out to be the worst thing to happen to you.

What you think is bad may very well turn out to be the best thing to happen to you.

Let me illustrate this with a Chinese parable.

One day there was a farmer in the rice field tablelands of China who's horse ran away.

The town's people gathered around and all said: "what a terrible loss it was."

The farmer looked at them and simply replied "maybe."

Then the next day the horse returned with another wild horse following and the townspeople gathered around and said: "how fortunate the horse came back and with another!"

To which the farmer, turned and looked toward them to simply say..." maybe."

The following day the farmer's son tried to break in the wild horse and the horse bucked him off and the son broke his leg.

The townspeople gathered around and said, "How terrible the son broke his leg!"

The farmer, understanding the nature of things now said to them "maybe."

Then early next morning the military rounded up the young men in the village to conscript into war but rejected the farmer's son because of his broken leg.

The townspeople gathered around the farmer and told him how lucky he was not to be conscripted into the military...to which the farmer simply replied..."maybe."

Ultimately we really never know if that person walking out on us was actually the best thing to happen or that failed business was actually the very best thing to happen for you.

Life is happening for you and not against you, therefore, it's best to use a higher degree of awareness and recognize the beautiful truth that your perception determines the meaning of an event, not the event in and of itself.

As William Shakespeare pointed out "nothing is good or bad, but thinking makes it so." 

Vaughan.