Smell The Flowers On Your Side Of The Path

I don't know about you, but I am

great at looking at my flaws; what's not working,

what I don't have and should have (my perception

of what should be etc etc).

I do appreciate everything I have and

write in a gratitude journal daily,

but with all the social media platforms we

are now party too, and seeing all the "edited"

versions of other people's lives, it

does become easier  to look at our flaws.

Then I remembered this lovely story that a 

coach gave me more than 15 years ago

(so it's obviously always been a problem for me ;-)

This is a really wonderful story…………

An elderly Chinese woman had two large pots, each hung on the ends of a pole which she carried across her neck. One of the pots had a crack in it, while the other was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water. At the end of the long walk from the stream to the house, the cracked pot arrived only half full. For a full two years this went on daily, with the woman bringing home only one and a half pots of water.

Of course the perfect pot was proud of it’s accomplishments. But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of it’s own imperfection, and miserable that it could only do half of what what it had been made to do. After 2 years of what it perceived to be bitter failure, it spoke to the woman one day by the stream.

“I am ashamed of myself, because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to the house”. The old woman smiled, “Did you notice that there are flowers on your side of the path but not on the other pot’s side? That’s because I have always known about your flaw, so I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back, you water them. For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate the table. Without you being just the way you are, there would not be this beauty to grace the house.”

Each of us has our own unique flaw. But it’s the cracks and flaws we each have that make our lives together so very interesting and rewarding. You’ve just got to take each person for what they are and look at the good in them.

SO to all my “crack pot” friends, have a fab week  

and remember to smell the flowers on your side of the path!!!!