For the next four Fridays, I will be sharing short stories with a philosophical twist.

I think of them as mini-beach reads with meaning. You may have heard some of them before, others may be new, or a different version. This version is from the Facebook page, “Lessons Learned in Life”.

Each story I share, made me stop and think, and left me feeling renewed, like a relaxing day at the beach or the scent of fresh-cut grass.

Hope you enjoy them, too.

Once upon a time . . .

A young woman went to her grandmother 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 that when one problem was solved, a new one arose.

Her grandmother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire. Soon the pots came to a boil. In the first, she placed carrots, in the second she placed eggs, and 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 then 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 granddaughter, she asked, “Tell me, what do you see?”

“Carrots, eggs, and coffee,” she replied.

She brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they were soft. She then asked her granddaughter to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard-boiled egg. Finally, she asked her to sip the coffee. The granddaughter smiled as she tasted its rich aroma.

The granddaughter then asked, “What does it mean, Grandmother?”

Her grandmother explained that each of these objects had faced the same adversity — boiling water — but 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 granddaughter. “When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg, or a coffee bean?”

So, which are you? A carrot? An egg? A coffee bean?

Which would you like to be? Remember it’s never too late to change your outlook or your life.

Have a great weekend!