The Stallion Story
Can you believe we’ve made it past the one-year mark of a pandemic? It’s strange to think back to those early days and what we each thought would happen. I remember being so mad that my kids’ school went remote for 3 weeks (including spring break) whereas my brother’s kids’ school only went remote for 2 weeks. Lucky them! Little did we all know this would become a much bigger experience.
How are you faring? It’s good to check in with yourself and just pause to reflect on your perspective. Like any change, it’s common to feel a roller coaster of emotions. Some weeks feeling confident and satisfied, while other weeks feeling so down and frustrated.
One approach that helps get through the roller coaster is the reminder of the seasons. Nature shows us cycles of change that support Earth. As winter will come to a close soon and spring begins, we can feel a shift. While winter was cold (and very snowy for some of us!), it doesn’t last forever. It may have been painful at moments, but it was allowing us to rest and soon enough it passes. Just as spring will come shortly bringing growth and birth.
Seasons in nature are more regular and expected than say, a pandemic. Both are change that can impact our moods, routines, and life. So how can we make sense of larger, unexpected events? I offer the reflection of The Stallion Story:
An old farmer lives on his farm with his teenage son. He also has a beautiful stallion that he lovingly cares for. The farmer enters his stallion into the annual country fair competition. His stallion wins first prize. The farmer’s neighbors gather to congratulate him on this great win. He calmly says, “Who knows what is good and what is bad?” Puzzled by this reaction, the neighbors go away.
The next week, some thieves who heard about the stallion’s increased value steal the horse. When the neighbors come to commiserate with the farmer, they find him again very calm and gathered. He says, “Who knows what is good and what is bad?”
Several days later, the spirited stallion escapes from the thieves and finds his way back to the farm, bringing with him a few wild mares he has befriended along the way. To his neighbors’ excited rounds of congratulations, the old farmer once again says, “Who knows what is good and what is bad?”
A few weeks later, the farmer’s son is thrown off one of these new mares as he is trying to break it in, and his leg is fractured. As the neighbors gather to commiserate with the old farmer, he once again reminds them, “Who knows what is good and what is bad?”
The following week, the imperial army marches through the village, conscripting all eligible young men for the war that has just broken out. The old farmer’s son is spared due to his fractured leg. The neighbors no longer bother to come to the old farmer to congratulate him. By now they know what his response will be: “Who knows what is good and what is bad?”
We cannot know immediately if things are good or bad.
This story is a grounding reminder when unexpected things happen in life, such as a pandemic. It is human to react with a range of emotions when we are faced with surprises and things that don’t go our way. I fully believe in embracing the feelings that you are experiencing. Feel the joy and the heartache. AND it’s helpful to remember that we can’t know fully in the moment if a situation is really as bad as it seems or a blessing in disguise that is bringing us a gift. We can be present and trust in our own ability to make choices that align with the life we want.
With practice, we can see a gift in each situation.
While I don’t like the death and illness that the pandemic has brought, there are gifts that it has brought each of us this year. It may not be apparent at first, but they are there if you choose to see them. Struggling to see any gifts from the pandemic? Reach out!