cracked pots

Posted By: merlina
Date: Sunday, 15 April 2001, at 1:45 a.m.

Crackpot
A water bearer in a hot country had two large pots, each hung on each end of
a pole
which he carried across his neck. One of the pots had a crack in it, and
while
the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water at the
end of the long walk from the stream to his house, the cracked pot would
always
arrive only half full.
For two whole years this went on daily. The water bearer would deliver, after
his long
walk, only one and a half pots full of water to his home. Of course, the
perfect pot
was proud of its accomplishments, perfect to the end for which it was made.
But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and miserable
that it was able to accomplish only half of what it had been made to do.
After two years of what it perceived to be a bitter failure, it spoke to the
water bearer
one day by the stream.
"I am ashamed of myself, and I want to apologize to you."
"Why?"asked the bearer. "What are you ashamed of?"
"I have been able, for these past two years," said the crackpot, "to deliver
only half my load because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all
the way back to your house. Because of my flaws, you have to do all of this
work, and you don't get full value from your efforts."
The water bearer felt sorry for the cracked pot, and in his compassion he
said,
"As we return to the house today, I want you to notice the beautiful flowers
along
the path."
Indeed, as they went up the hill, the cracked pot took notice of the sun
warming the beautiful wild flowers on the side of the path, and this cheered
it some.
But at the end of the trail, it still felt bad because it had, once again,
leaked out half its load. Again it apologized to the bearer for its failure.
The bearer said to the pot,
"Did you notice that there were flowers only on your side of your path, but
not on the
other pot's side? That's because I have always known about your flaw, and I
took
advantage of it. I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every
day while
we walk back from the stream, you've watered them. For two years I have been
able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate my table and please my wife
with their wondrous spicy scents."
"Without you being just the way you are," the husband went on, "I would not
have this beauty to grace my home."
Moral: Each of us has our own unique flaws. We're all cracked pots. But it's
the cracks and flaws we each have that make our lives together so very
interesting and rewarding.
You've just got to take each person for what they are, and look for the good
in them.

http://drakurion.com/Merlina

Messages In This Thread

cracked pots
merlina -- Sunday, 15 April 2001, at 1:45 a.m.

Re: cracked pots
Ginger -- Sunday, 15 April 2001, at 6:35 a.m.

Re: cracked pots
Unknown Artist -- Monday, 16 April 2001, at 8:38 p.m.

Re: cracked pots
Droid -- Wednesday, 18 April 2001, at 11:59 a.m.

Re: cracked pots
fantazzi -- Thursday, 19 April 2001, at 10:01 a.m.

 

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