When we need it most, our grandparents are often a source of comfort, wisdom, and guidance.
During a difficult time, a grandmother gives her granddaughter some simple advice in this story. While the author of this essay is unknown, anyone can benefit from its wise counsel as it contains universal truths.
The young lady asked her grandmother for help. She was struggling with life and worried about how she would manage. Her grandmother served carrots, eggs, and coffee.
She told the girl that these were the three qualities she needed to succeed: strength, faith, and determination. With these three things, the young woman could overcome any obstacle.
Her grandmother took her into the kitchen. She placed three pots of water on a hot fire.
The pots quickly boiled over. Carrots went into the first one, eggs into the second, and ground coffee into the last. The grandmother simply let them sit and cook without saying anything.
After a while, the grandmother turned off the burners. The carrots were taken out of the pot and placed in a bowl by the woman.
The woman took the eggs out of the pot and placed them in a bowl. The woman poured the ground coffee beans from the pot into a container. « Carrots are good for eyesight, » said the grandmother. « Eggs are good for the brain. And besides, coffee is invigorating. »
The grandmother asked what the granddaughter had observed. The granddaughter’s reaction was carrots, eggs, and coffee. The grandmother drew her closer and forced her to touch the carrots.
She noticed they felt soft. The grandmother then forced her to crack an egg. After removing the shell, she found the egg was hard-boiled.
The grandmother then told her to taste the coffee. The daughter smiled as she breathed in the strong aroma.
The granddaughter then asked for its meaning. According to the grandmother, although all these items had come into contact with boiling water, they all reacted differently.
The boiling water changed carrots, eggs, and coffee beans in different ways. The carrots started rough, stiff, and inflexible, but after cooking, they became soft and weak.
Despite their fragility, the egg’s thin shell preserved its liquid interior.
However, once submerged in hot water, its inside became hard. The coffee beans were unique. After the water boiled, they replaced it.
The grandmother asked if her granddaughter resembled a carrot, an egg, or a coffee bean. « Am I the strong-looking carrot, also experiencing sorrow and adversity? » said the granddaughter after some thought.
« Will I wilt, soften, or lose my strength? Carrots, like people, are initially powerful, but they deteriorate through pain and tragedy. »
« Do I resemble the malleable egg, whose shape changes when heated? I used to have a flexible mind, but have I stiffened and hardened after a loss, a separation, financial difficulties, or another experience?
Eggs, like people, start with a pliable heart before changing over time. Their spirit stiffens and hardens through enduring difficult experiences. »
« Does my outward appearance remain the same, but inside I am bitter and hard, with a stiff spirit and a hardened heart? »
The coffee bean enhances the taste of hot water. Even when things are at their worst, the bean improves and changes the environment.
When the hours are darkest and the trials are greatest, the bean develops to a higher degree. Are you a carrot, an egg, or a coffee bean when faced with a challenge?
This parable made me think about who I am under pressure. Do you understand who you are? Send this parable to your relatives and friends!