Good News? Bad News? Who Can Tell!

My dear Soul Friend and colleague, Lauren May, shared a 2000 year old story that comes from the Taoist tradition with me the other day to help me with a challenging situation I was facing.   I found it reprinted in an article by Evelyn Theiss in the Cleveland Plain Dealer, so I wanted to share it with all of you.  Here it is…

A Chinese farmer gets a horse, which soon runs away. A neighbor says, “That’s bad news.” The farmer replies, “Good news, bad news, who can say?”
The horse comes back and brings another horse with him. Good news, you might say.

The farmer gives the second horse to his son, who rides it, then is thrown and badly breaks his leg.

“So sorry for your bad news,” says the concerned neighbor. “Good news, bad news, who can say?” the farmer replies.

In a week or so, the emperor’s men come and take every able-bodied young man to fight in a war. The farmer’s son is spared.

Good news, of course.

I’m sure we can all relate to this story.  There are times when things happen in our lives that seem to be disastrous, only to be shown to have a silver lining later on.  When I think of this concept, it makes me remember to step back and withhold my judgment about what is happening.  Do I remember to do this right away?  Not usually (which is where Lauren comes in!).  But when I finally do, I am able to feel more calm and able to respond in the highest and best way.

An exercise I share in my book, Soul Friends Guide to Surviving the Pit:  A Step-by-Step Handbook for Surviving and Thriving through Tough Life Changes I share the following exercise in Step Seven:  Be Grateful:

“Take a moment to look back over your own life.  Do you have your own story of something that seemed horrible at the time, but turned out to be a blessing?  If you do, record it below.  Remembering it will help you to believe that no matter how it looks right now, something good will be born from today’s struggles.”

I wrote this book as part of my healing process after going through a divorce in 2000.  It took me a lot of years to finally get it in print, but I’m glad I finally did because it helps me to be able to look back as needed!  The steps that I went through to move from a place of despair to a place of hope are applicable in all stages of life.  So if you are facing a challenge today, perhaps looking back at the places where what sounded like bad news turned out to be good news will help.

Love and blessings to you all!

Nancy

PS.  Lauren May is my go-to person when I need to get really clear on what I want to manifest and understand how to get there.  You can learn more about her work on my community website here:  Lauren May

PSS.  If you are interested in learning more about my Soul Friends book, it is available here on Amazon.com:  Soul Friends Guide