Once upon a time, there was an old farmer who worked his fields with his son.
One day, their horse ran away. The neighbors came to express sympathy.
“Oh, what bad luck,” they said. The farmer simply replied, “Maybe.”
A week later, the horse returned, bringing with it three wild horses.
The neighbors rejoiced, “Oh, what good luck!”
The farmer said again, “Maybe.”
The next day, the farmer’s son tried to ride one of the wild horses.
He was thrown off and broke his leg.
The neighbors cried, “Oh, what terrible luck!”
The farmer said quietly, “Maybe.”
A few days later, soldiers came to the village to draft all the young men for war.
Because the son’s leg was broken, he was left behind.
The neighbors said, “Oh, what wonderful luck!”
And once again, the farmer said, “Maybe.”
Life is rarely as simple as good or bad, success or failure.
Each event carries a rhythm of its own, a pulse of change that we can’t always hear in the moment. When we release our need to label and control, we begin to trust the quiet wisdom moving through all things.
Healing unfolds this way, too. What feels like loss may become restoration. What feels like delay may be gentle preparation. When we live in rhythm with life instead of resistance, peace returns.
I release my need to label what happens as good or bad.
I trust that life, like the seasons, unfolds with wisdom.
