STORY TIME! GATHER AROUND CHILDREN - Drops of oil (story taken from 'The Alchemist' by Paulo Coelho pg 30-32)

A certain shopkeeper sent his son to learn about the secret of happiness from the wisest man in the world. The lad wandered through the desert for forty days, and finally came upon a beautiful castle, high atop a mountain. It was there that the wise man lived.

Rather than finding a saintly man, though, our hero, on entering the main room of the castle, saw a hive of activity: tradesmen came and went, people were conversing in the corners, a small orchestra was playing soft music, and there was a table covered with platters of the most delicious food in that part of the world. The wise man conversed with everyone, and the boy had to wait for two hours before it was his turn to be given the man's attention.

The wise man listened attentively to the boy's explanation of why he had come, but told him that he didn't have time just then to explain the secret of happiness. He suggested that the boy look around the palace and return in two hours.

"Meanwhile, I want you to do something", said the wise man, handing the boy a teaspoon that held two drops of oil. "As you wander around, carry this spoon with you without allowing the oil to spill."

The boy began climbing and descending the many stairways of the palace, keeping his eyes fixed on the spoon. After two hours, he returned to the room where the wise man was.

"Well,' asked the wise man, 'did you see the Persian tapestries that are hanging in my dining hall? Did you see the garden that it took the master gardener ten years to create? Did you notice the beautiful parchments in my library?"

The boy was embarrassed, and confessed that he had observed nothing. His only concern had been not to spill the oil that the wise man had entrusted to him.    

"Then go back and observe the marvels of my world" said the wise man. "You cannot trust a man if you don't know his house."

Relieved, the boy picked up the spoon and returned to his exploration of the palace, this time observing all of the works of art on the ceilings and walls. He saw the gardens, the mountains all around him, the beauty of the flowers, and the taste with which everything was selected. Upon returning to the wise man, he related in detail everything he had seen.

"But where are the drops of oil I entrusted to you?" asked the wise man.

Looking down at the spoon he held, the boy saw that the oil was gone.

"Well, there is only one piece of advice I can give you..." said the wisest of wise men. "The secret of happiness is to see all the marvels of the world, and never to forget the drops of oil on the spoon."

Threading the needle

Its been years since I have threaded a needle, did it recently and the experience came off as therapeutic. It evoked a sense of urgency (so the hole in my pants could be sewed) and patience. Patience because unless you're a Master Threader (if such a title exists, it sounds pretty neat you must admit) it requires some degree of stillness and precision. Stillness for the hand with the needle seeing it isn't necessarily the biggest hole and precision to get the snake through the hole when the opportune strike presents itself. It's as if you're moving fast but slowly. I thought about how much different or similar rather life is to threading a needle. The eye of the needle representing that small window of opportunity and having that stillness and patience to recognize when its your moment to move; being confused or in the case of some difficult threads that have split ends it makes it harder to go through that window of opportunity. Depending on how small that hole is, split ends may never make it through. Then there is the feeling of triumph (not really a New Year's Day celebration type thing) when you successfully thread the needle after some misses; similarly when you go through that window of opportunity after some misses (deserving of a New Year's Day type celebration); what tops that?  

Sunday Paradigm II

An awakened drunkard values being sober more than a sober man who has never been drunk
Its when you are truly prepared to live without anything you begin to value everything and chase nothing
Life is an experience we live through once but die within it many times
Don't confuse the man that is content with the one that is lazy; one smiles, the other wishes more could be done and does nothing
A lot of things divide us rather than unite us, but then who said unity was the aim of the day anyway
Politics leaves the noble restless the crooked free and the greedy adventurous
I wish Spain didn't win world cup
Curiosity killed the cat but gave greatness to the likes of George Alcorn, Emmett W. Chappelle and Albert Einstein
You came here will leave here so what will you do while you're here?
Dying while wondering "What if...?" is a miserable way to die...I haven't experienced death yet but I know I'm right
I really hope Brazil wins the next world cup
Laugh, think and laugh some more, share the thought share the laughter and value the days you cried so you laugh harder when you get the chance
Listen to all believe few and trust God
All emotions should be seen as necessary for a more fulfilling life
Neglecting or pushing aside the least desirable emotions is adding straws to the camel's back
Don't break now!