'Maybe'

A lesson from the parable of the Chinese farmer

There’s an old parable about a Chinese farmer that teaches us a valuable lesson. 

Once upon a time, the farmer's horse ran away. The neighbors all expressed their sorrow. They told the farmer it was so unfortunate. 

“Maybe,” the farmer said. 

The next day, the horse returned. It brought seven horses with it. The neighbors came by and exclaimed about how lucky the farmer had been. What a turn of events, they said. 

“Maybe,” the farmer said. 

The next day, the farmer’s son tried to ride one of the horses and fell off. He broke his leg. The neighbors once again expressed their sorrow. This was unfortunate, they told the farmer. 

“Maybe,” the farmer said. 

Well, the day after that, conscription officers arrived to conscript people into the army. They rejected the farmer’s son because he had a fractured leg. How fortunate, the neighbors said. 

“Maybe,” the farmer responded. 

By now, you get the point. 

We are human, so we tend to label many outcomes “good” or “bad” or "positive" or “negative.” But remember, sometimes we cannot know how something might play out. In some situations, we must wait and have faith, then handle whatever comes the best we can. 

Of course, it’s acceptable to mourn negative events in our lives. We’re human. You won’t find any toxic positivity here. Sometimes, certain events just stink.

But our greatest struggles can often become our biggest blessings if we take a step back and look from 50,000 feet.