This week I continued to hear these phrases in my mind. It was introduced at church, but I have heard them used before. It made me think deeply about how often people wait for the perfect opportunity to take action. The problem is that the perfect opportunity never seems to come. People spend so much of their lives in the waiting room. Waiting to be seen, waiting to be heard, waiting to make a change and allowing their life to pass them by without taking ownership.
Everyday is an opportunity to make a difference. You can start out by making small changes that are easy to manage. For example, say good morning when you pass by people. It is often overlooked but social interaction is a key piece in one’s overall levels of happiness. I try to walk into every room with a smile, regardless of how others' moods may be. Determining yourself as an individual, separate from the complaints of others can actually boost their negative attitude.
As I returned back to the classroom, my principal left a note for each of us in our mailbox and it said “You have the power to transform any situation into something positive, just like the coffee bean transforms hot water into coffee.” -Damon West
I have heard of Damon West before and the Coffee Bean story but I didn’t read it until this week. I asked my principal about her connection to it and she let me borrow her book. I could have just taken the note and went on about my day, but stopping to make that connection is an important piece to the bigger puzzle of life.
The story of the coffee bean basically goes like this:
“If you think you are a carrot, you will believe the power and forces outside of you are more powerful than who you are on the inside, and you will become weaker.
If you think you are an egg, you will believe the negativity in the world has the power to harden your heart and cause you to be negative like the world.
But if you are a coffee bean, you will not allow the outside world to impact you. You will know that the power inside you is greater than the forces outside you, and with this insight, you will transform your environment and world from the inside out.”
I leave you with this question, which one will you choose to replicate; the carrot, the egg or the coffee bean?