The Constant Possibility of Good

May 30, 2010

Dear Friends,

Many of you are probably familiar with this line from Shakespeare’s Hamlet: "There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so." Said another way, nothing in and of itself is inherently good or bad. We are the ones who assign meaning to things and label them as good, bad, or indifferent.

Well, if that’s true—and I do believe it is—then what kind of attitude should we take about the different kind of circumstances that we experience in life?

In some circles, the answer to that question is illustrated by the following fable:

There was once a wise old farmer who owned a prize horse. One day his horse ran away. Upon hearing the news, his neighbors came over to offer their condolences. "Such bad luck," they said sympathetically. "Maybe," was all the farmer replied. A few days later the horse returned, bringing with it three other wild horses. "How wonderful," the neighbors exclaimed. "Maybe," replied the old man again. The following day, the farmer’s son tried to ride one of the untamed horses, was thrown off, and broke his leg. Once again, the neighbors offered their sympathy, saying "How awful." "Maybe," answered the farmer one more time. The day after that, military officials came to the village to draft young men into the army. Seeing that the son of the farmer had a broken leg, they passed him by. The neighbors once again congratulated the farmer on how well things had turned out. “What good fortune,” they said. The farmer replied yet again, “Maybe.”

I appreciate this story for one particular reason. It illustrates the fact that we rarely, if ever, know enough to be able to accurately judge any circumstance as either good or bad. However, I wonder if there isn’t a more positive way to respond to what we encounter in life.

I realize that the farmer’s response was objective and non-resistant. And that certainly elicits a feeling of peace, which is wonderful. But to me, the farmer’s “maybe so, maybe not” attitude is somewhat flat and lifeless—limiting the possibility of feeling anything beyond peace . . . such as joy. And I, for one, believe that our spirits are in this world—and in these bodies—to experience happiness and joy, as well as peace.

If something happens that I think is good (even though I know it is just a subjective judgment on my part), I want to be able to experience all the good feelings that come along with that. And when things don’t seem to be going very well, I still want to experience good feelings! So how do I do that?

I simply look at every situation that “appears” to be bad, and see it as a stepping stone to my highest good. And that’s not just wishful thinking on my part. Similar to the circumstances described in the fable, it has been my experience time and time again that the possibility for good exists within every situation . . . and the divine flow is continually working on my behalf—and everyone’s behalf—to manifest that good.

If you want a more positive and uplifting way to respond to life’s circumstances—a way that promotes feelings of happiness and joy, gratitude and thanksgiving—then I invite you to approach life differently than the farmer did in the version of the fable that you just read. I invite you to consider the example set by the farmer in my own alternate version of this story:

There was once a wise old farmer who owned a prize horse. One day his horse ran away. Upon hearing the news, his neighbors came over to offer their condolences. "Such bad luck," they said sympathetically. "I believe there can be good in this," the farmer replied. A few days later the horse returned, bringing with it three other wild horses. "How wonderful," the neighbors exclaimed. "Yes, it is good," replied the old man. The following day, the farmer’s son tried to ride one of the untamed horses, was thrown off, and broke his leg. Once again, the neighbors offered their sympathy, saying, "How awful.” And once again, the farmer answered, “I believe there can be good in this.” The day after that, military officials came to the village to draft young men into the army. Seeing that the son of the farmer had a broken leg, they passed him by. The neighbors once again congratulated the farmer on how well things had turned out. “What good fortune,” they said. And one more time the farmer replied, "Yes, it is good. Very good indeed!”

So, my friends, the choice is yours. You can achieve peace by assigning little or no meaning to what occurs in life. Or, you can open yourself up to something more by seeing everything as good, or good in potential.

I, for one, choose to thoroughly enjoy all the “good” things that happen in life. And more than that, I choose to appreciate the constant possibility of good in everything else.

Steven

© 2010 by Steven Lane Taylor
Author of Row, Row, Row Your Boat:
A Guide for Living Life in the Divine Flow
www.rowrowrow.com