A
carrot,
an
egg,
and
a
cup
of
coffee...
A
young
woman
went
to
her
mother
and
told
her
about
her
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
fighting
and
struggling.
It
seemed
as
one
problem
was
solved,
a
new
one
arose.
Her
mother
took
her
to
the
kitchen.
She
filled
three
pots
with
water
and
placed
each
on a
high
fire.
Soon
the
pots
came
to
boil.
In
the
first
she
placed
carrots,
in
the
second
she
placed
eggs,
and
in
the
last
she
placed
ground
coffee
beans.
She
let
them
sit
and
boil,
without
saying
a
word.
In
about
twenty
minutes
she
turned
off
the
burners.
She
fished
the
carrots
out
and
placed
them
in a
bowl.
She
pulled
the
eggs
out
and
placed
them
in a
bowl.
Then
she
ladled
the
coffee
out
and
placed
it
in a
bowl.
Turning
to
her
daughter,
she
asked,
“Tell
me,
what
do
you
see?”
“Carrots,
eggs,
and
coffee,”
she
replied.
Her
mother
brought
her
closer
and
asked
her
to
feel
the
carrots.
She
did
and
noted
that
they
were
soft.
The
mother
then
asked
the
daughter
to
take
an
egg
and
break
it.
After
pulling
off
the
shell,
she
observed
the
hard
boiled
egg.
Finally,
the
mother
asked
the
daughter
to
sip
The
coffee.
The
daughter
smiled
as
she
tasted
its
rich
aroma.
The
daughter
then
asked,
“What
does
it
mean,
mother?”
Her
mother
explained
that
each
of
these
objects
had
faced
the
same
adversity
...
boiling
water...
each
reacted
differently.
The
carrot
went
in
strong,
hard,
and
unrelenting.
However,
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?”
she
asked
her
daughter.
“When
adversity
knocks
on
your
door,
how
do
you
respond?
Are
you
a
carrot,
an
egg,
or a
coffee
bean?”
Think
of
this:
Which
am
I?
Am I
the
carrot
that
seems
strong,
but
with
pain
and
adversity
do I
wilt
and
become
soft
and
lose
my
strength?
Am I
the
egg
that
starts
with
a
malleable
heart,
but
changes
with
the
heat?
Did
I
have
a
fluid
spirit,
but
after
a
death,
a
breakup,
a
financial
hardship
or
some
other
trial,
have
I
become
hardened
and
stiff?
Does
my
shell
look
the
same,
but
on
the
inside
am I
bitter
and
tough
with
a
stiff
spirit
and
hardened
heart?
Or
am I
like
the
coffee
bean?
The
bean
actually
changes
the
hot
water,
the
very
circumstance
that
brings
the
pain.
When
the
water
gets
hot,
it
releases
the
fragrance
and
flavor.
If
you
are
like
the
bean,
when
things
are
at
their
worst,
you
get
better
and
change
the
situation
around
you.
When
the
hour
is
the
darkest
and
trials
are
their
greatest,
do
you
elevate
yourself
to
another
level?
How
do
you
handle
adversity?
Are
you
a
carrot,
an
egg,
or a
coffee
bean?
Count
your
blessings,
not
your
problems.
There
are
moments
in
life
when
you
miss
someone
so
much
that
you
just
want
to
pick
them
from
your
dreams
and
hug
them
for
real!
When
the
door
of
happiness
closes,
another
opens;
but
often
times
we
look
so
long
at
the
closed
door
that
we
don’t
see
the
one,
which
has
been
opened
for
us.
Don’t
go
for
looks;
they
can
deceive.
Don’t
go
for
wealth;
even
that
fades
away.
Go
for
someone
who
makes
you
smile,
because
it
takes
only
a
smile
to
make
a
dark
day
seem
bright.
Find
the
one
that
makes
your
heart
smile.
Dream
what
you
want
to
dream;
go
where
you
want
to
go;
be
what
you
want
to
be,
because
you
have
only
one
life
and
one
chance
to
do
all
the
things
you
want
to
do.
May
you
have
enough
happiness
to
make
you
sweet,
enough
trials
to
make
you
strong,
enough
sorrow
to
keep
you
human
and
enough
hope
to
make
you
happy.
The
happiest
of
people
don’t
necessarily
have
the
best
of
everything;
they
just
make
the
most
of
everything
that
comes
along
their
way.
The
brightest
future
will
always
be
based
on a
forgotten
past;
you
can’t
go
forward
in
life
until
you
let
go
of
your
past
failures
and
heartaches.
When
you
were
born,
you
were
crying
and
everyone
around
you
was
smiling.
Live
your
life
so
at
the
end,
you’re
the
one
who
is
smiling
and
everyone
around
you
is
crying.