Are you a Carrot, Egg, or Coffee Bean?

When I was younger, my dad sent me this story, and I wanted to share it because it changed the way I viewed adversity. I was always a quite resilient individual...my family reminded me of that often. But enduring difficult times is just half the battle...How do you let it change you? Are you a carrot, egg, or coffee bean?

A daughter complained to her father about 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 struggling. It seemed that as soon as one problem was solved, a new one arose.

Her father, a chef, took her to the kitchen. He filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire. Soon the pots came to a boil. In one he placed carrots, in the second he placed eggs, and the last he placed ground coffee beans. He let them sit and boil, without saying a word.

The daughter sucked her teeth and impatiently waited, wondering what he was doing. After twenty minutes he turned off the burners. He fished the carrots out and placed them in a bowl. He pulled the eggs out and placed them a bowl. Then he ladled the coffee out and placed it in a
bowl. Turning to her he asked. "What do you see?" "Carrots, eggs, and coffee," she replied.

He brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they were soft. He then asked her to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard-boiled egg.

Finally, he asked her to sip the coffee. She smiled as she tasted its rich aroma. She said, "What's the point?"

He explained that each of the items had faced the same adversity - boiling water - but each reacted differently. The carrot went in strong and hard. But 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?" he asked his daughter. "When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg, or a coffee bean?"

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What strikes me about this concept of being a coffee bean is that it's more than just enduring adversity without letting it affect you negatively. It implies that as a result of difficult times, we enrich our environment. Obviously we don't walk around leaking coffee, so what does that look like? How do we acquire characteristics of our endeared expresso bean?

We've all seen and/or experienced the infectious nature of a random small act of kindness, or the simple act of smiling at a passerby. It has a dominoe effect. Now imagine when we are having a rough day, and we let that impact how we interact with others. It can have the same dominoe effect in a negative way.

The moment we see difficulties in life as tests and recognize that there is a wisdom/purpose behind each one, we start to receive confirmation that everything is as it should be. We sometimes hope for miracles or signs to feel God and help change situations we may find ourselves in, but I would argue that these very confirmations are the symphony of Divine presence in our lives. Constantly surrounding us, embracing us, and protecting us. We just have to develop the capacity, perspective and attitude to see it. Once we view things through the lens of "everything happens for a reason" and "this too shall pass", we are better able to understand the wisdom behind tests and remain positive during times of difficulty. Finding peace in the comfort of knowing that we are loved and never alone.