In ancient times, a King had a large boulder placed on a well-travelled 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 along 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.
photo credit: communicatebetterblog.com
A farmer came along the same roadway carrying a load of vegetables (organic, of course). Seeing the boulder, the farmer laid down his burden and tried to move the stone to the side of the road. After much effort and exertion, he finally succeeded. As the farmer picked up his load of vegetables he noticed a purse lying in the road where the boulder had been. The purse was full of gold coins and a note from the King saying that the gold was for whoever removed the boulder from the roadway.
Smiling to himself as he went up the road, the farmer learned what many of us often forget! Every obstacle presents us with an opportunity to improve our state of being. How are you holding and dealing with the obstacles in your pathway? How well are you re-framing your thinking about obstacles as things to embrace rather than things to getting angry about or avoid?
To quote Walt Disney, “All the adversity I’ve had in my life, all my troubles and obstacles, have strengthened me…You may not realize it when it happens, but a kick in the teeth may be the best thing in the world for you.”
Next time you face an obstacle (and we’re pretty sure there’ll be one), how quickly can you remind yourself to consider it a blessing and look for the silver lining?