Get Your Perspective Right

There was once a lady who had two sons. The elder son was a Noodle Maker while the younger son was an Umbrella Seller.

On Sunny days, she was worried for her younger son. “Oh, No. It’s not been raining. I am sure my son’s Umbrella business is not doing well. What will happen to him? I hope he is ok”. She worried so much that she was sad.

On days when it rained, the lady would cry for her elder son, ” Oh God, my son can’t dry noodles if the sun is not shining bright. I wonder what he will do to manage himself.”

Rainy days or sunny days, the Mother had reason to be unhappy all the time, worrying about her two sons. She was always grieving, and all her friends called her the “Sad Lady.”

One day a Monk came to the town and met the “Sad Lady.” The Mother explained her predicament to the Monk, “What can I do. I worry about my sons, and I don’t know how to feel happy.”

The Monk smiled kindly and said, ” Madam, you don’t have to worry, I will show you a way to feel happy. You don’t have to grieve no more”. The “Sad Lady” was happy. She asked the Monk to tell her what to do.

The Monk replied, ” You see. It’s very simple. All you have to do is to change your perspective.”

“On Sunny Days, don’t think of your younger son not being able to sell his umbrellas. Instead, think of our elder son being able to sell plenty of noodles and making a lot of money. And, when it rains, you think of your younger son and how well his Umbrella business would be doing.”

The Sad lady saw the wisdom in the Monk’s advice. She changed her perspective and found peace in her heart. Instead of worrying, she was able to see how well both her sons were doing.

The Sad Lady became the Happy Lady.

In our lives, everything is about perspective. We can either see the glass half empty or half full. It’s up to us to choose what we want to see- a glass half empty or a glass half full. In this story, nothing changed for the Mother. It still rained on some days, and it was sunny on some days. The weather was what it was, and it did not impact in any manner the way both her sons managed their business.

All that changed was the Mother’s perspective.

Sometimes, what we require is a simple shift in perspective, and many of the big problems we are grappling with may cease to be problems in the first place.

Let’s develop the attitude to see life as a half glass full !! Our happiness is in seeing the half-full portion !!