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 that, 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 a 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 do you see?"
"Carrots, eggs, and coffee," the young woman replied.
The mother brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots.
She did and noted that they were soft.
She then asked her to take an egg and break it.
After pulling off the shell, she 
observed the hard-boiled egg.
Finally, she asked her 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 - but 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?"
the mother 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,
or a financial hardship, does my shell look the same,
but on the inside am I bitter and tough with a stiff
spirit and a 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 flavour.
If you are like the bean, when things are at their worst,
you get better and change the situation around you.
When the hours are the darkest and trials are their
greatest, do you elevate to another level?
How do you handle adversity? Are you a carrot, an egg, or a coffee bean?
