"Good Luck or Bad Luck, Who Knows?"
Post on: May 3, 2019
An ancient story goes like this — there was once a farmer who owned a horse. He was very dependent on his mare and was proud of it. Day after day, it ploughed the fields and brought him a steady income.
One day, the mare broke through the fence and escaped to the woods. The neighbours heard about the incident and came to console him. They said, “Your only source of livelihood has gone with the wind. We wonder how you’re going to cultivate the field. What bad luck!”
The farmer was nonchalant and replied: “Good luck or bad luck, who knows?”
He went about toiling the field with alternative means. One week later, the mare returned to the farmer with two other stallions. Everyone was astounded. The neighbours were jealous of his new-found possessions and came to see him.
They said: “You have become a rich man overnight. The horses will bring you twofold or more riches which you had supposedly lost. You can even sell them and make a good fortune. What good luck!”
The farmer was nonchalant and replied: “Good luck or bad luck, who knows?”
Two days later, the farmer’s only son was toiling in the fields with the horses. While he was attempting to tame one of the wild stallions, he fell as a result of its sudden gallop. He broke his legs and was in deep pain.
The neighbours heard of the farmer’s plight and came to see him. They felt that if the mare did not bring the stallions when it returned, this unfortunate event would not have taken place. “It is the planting season and now there is no one to help you; what bad luck!” they opined.
The farmer was nonchalant and replied: “Good luck or bad luck, who knows?”
A week later, the emperor’s soldiers came marching into the village. They had a mission – all male children above 16 years old were to be conscripted into the army. When the soldiers saw that the farmer’s son was bandaged with a broken leg, they exempted him.
The neighbours were distraught as their sons were enlisted into the army. They came to the farmer and said, “Your son is the only one among his peers who is still here. Thank your lucky stars he broke his leg. What good luck!”
As always, the farmer was calm and replied: “Good luck or bad luck, who knows?”
Moral of the story: From our human perspective, things which we discern as bad may be something good in disguise. Likewise, things that seem good may be bad after all.
At each stage of “bad luck” that happened to the farmer, he could have thrown in the towel and gave up. If he did that, it would have prevented him from taking advantage of the “good luck” that followed subsequently…
Some things in life are beyond our control. What we can do is to accept them and move forward. An oft-quoted saying puts it so fittingly: “To a brave man, good and bad luck are like his left and right hands. He uses both.”
The Jolly Good Times will be bringing you a series of such motivating stories. They are powerful read; easy to digest and leaves behind a message. If you had enjoyed reading, share it — invite your kakis (buddies) to like us on our Facebook.
By: Shaji Thomas Varughese
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Photo: Pixabay.com
