Carrot, Egg, or Coffee Bean?

A carrot, an egg and a cup of coffee...You will never look at a cup of
coffee the same way again........

A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how
things were so hard for her. She did not know how she was going to
make it and wanted to give up. She was tired of fighting and
struggling. It seemed as one problem was solved, a new one arose.

Her mother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots with water
and placed each on a high fire. Soon the pots came to boil. In the
first she placed carrots, in the second she placed eggs, and in the
last she placed ground coffee beans. She let them sit and boil,
without saying a word.

In about twenty minutes she turned off the burners. She fished the
carrots out and placed them in a bowl. She pulled the eggs out and
placed them in a bowl. Then she ladled the coffee out and placed it in
a bowl.

Turning to her daughter, she asked, "Tell me what you see."

"Carrots, eggs, and coffee," she replied.

Her mother brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She
did and noted that they were soft. The mother then asked the daughter
to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed
the hard boiled egg. Finally, the mother asked the daughter to sip the
coffee. The daughter smiled as she tasted its rich aroma. The daughter
then asked, "What does it mean, mother?" Her mother explained that
each of these objects had faced the same adversity... boiling water.
Each reacted differently. The carrot went in strong, hard, and
unrelenting. However, after being subjected to the boiling water, it
softened and became weak. The egg had been fragile. Its thin outer
shell had protected its liquid interior, but after sitting through the
boiling water, its inside became hardened. The ground coffee beans
were unique, however. After they were in the boiling water, they had
changed the water.

"Which are you?" she asked her daughter. "When adversity knocks on
your door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee
bean?"

Think of this: Which am I? Am I the carrot that seems strong, but with
pain and adversity do I wilt and become soft and lose my strength? Am
I the egg that starts with a malleable heart, but changes with the
heat? Did I have a fluid spirit, but after a death, a breakup, a
financial hardship or some other trial, have I become hardened and
stiff? Does my shell look the same, but on the inside am I bitter and
tough with a stiff spirit and hardened heart? Or am I like the coffee
bean? The bean actually changes the hot water, the very circumstance
that brings the pain. When the water gets hot, it releases the
fragrance and flavor. If you are like the bean, when things are at
their worst, you get better and change the situation around you. When
the hour is the darkest and trials are their greatest, do you elevate
yourself to another level? How do you handle adversity? Are you a
carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?

Which one are YOU?