An Aesop Fable: The North Wind and The Sun

An Aesop Fable
The North Wind and The Sun

The North Wind boasted of great strength. The Sun argued that there was great strength in gentleness.


"We shall have a contest," said the Sun.


Far below, a man traveled a winding road. He was wearing a warm winter coat.


"As a test of strength," said the Sun, "Let us see which of us can take the coat off of that man."


"It will be quite simple for me to force him to remove his coat," bragged the Wind.


The Wind blew so hard, the birds clung to the trees. The world was filled with dust and leaves. But the harder the wind blew down the road, the tighter the shivering man clung to his coat.


Then, the Sun came out from behind a cloud. Sun warmed the air and the frosty ground. The man on the road unbuttoned his coat.


The sun grew slowly brighter and brighter.


Soon the man felt so hot, he took off his coat and sat down in a shady spot.


"How did you do that?" said the Wind.


"It was easy," said the Sun, "Through the strength of gentleness I got my way."

"Being happy ..." By Lionel Ketchian

Being happy is the well being that comes from a balanced mind. The more control of our thinking we have, the more our mind is not always telling us what we should be doing. We can then start to experience more happiness. As Aristotle said, "It is the mark of an educated mind to entertain a thought without accepting it." If we cannot stop our thoughts from always telling us what to think about or what to react to then we are not in control of ourselves. This is the reason we feel that doing things will get us where we think we need to be. The truth is we really don't need to do anything or go anywhere. If we start right where we are now, we can begin to realize we have everything we need to be happy. What are we missing? The realization that we have everything we need to start being happy right now. Ask yourself: Is that thought serving me?

HAPPINESS QUOTES

When you are unhappy, you've allowed yourself to be framed. When you are in a frame it is impossible to see the whole picture. See the big picture and stay happy.
- Lionel Ketchian

What is happiness?
It is unconditional acceptance of life, the good, the bad, and the ugly. Once we can understand unconditional happiness we can love, and be loved. Part of what I am talking about is accepting yourself for all your parts, the good, the bad, and the ugly. Once you do that you realize you are good enough. In fact you're perfect! When you feel good about yourself it is then that you can improve yourself. In fact Being Happy is the best self-improvement exercise that I know of.
- Lionel Ketchian

Detach From All Things

Detach From All Things by Dennis


Detachment from our stuff may be one of the keys to happiness.

Wouldn't it be freeing not to have a care in the world, to let things come and go, to let everything and everybody just slip through your fingers and not hold onto anything? We seem to spend so much of our time and energy desperately acquiring and holding on to what we have, that we find ourselves with very little time left to actually enjoy it. We bust our butt to get stuff; a house, a car, a fridge and stove, the list is long and endless. Then once our goodies are bought and paid for, or maybe not quite paid for (29% interest lets us "have it all and have it now"), we have to insure it just in case we lose it somehow. Paying for this insurance takes still more of our effort. So really, what is the point of acquiring anything? Maybe I'm on my way to a hermitage!

I do like my big TV, my car is useful, and my house is comfortable. I like my bike and my computer etc. But I have to remind myself not to cling to these things and not to identify myself with them. If they were all gone tomorrow would I still be me? Of course I would, I am not represented by my accumulation and I should not be 'proud' of my possessions. I have never understood how someone could be 'proud' of a shiny sports car. Yes it may be an amazing machine, but the owner didn't build it, they didn't create it. It's not like they built a house with their own two hands or composed a symphony! How can one take pride in something that they simply have in their possession? Its strange how much of our self worth and identity can be wrapped up in an object that has no inherent value. In the end everything we have is merely a tool.

Let it come and let it go. We have heard it said before that we cannot really own anything. We are all just passing through life briefly and all that we gather will move along as well. Metal will rust, wood will rot; everything returns to the earth.

Hoarding material goods and money is bad news. It only serves to promote paranoia and the fear of loss. I'm not saying we shouldn't be financially responsible, we all know what that is, even though many of us have a great deal of trouble with it. But to allow the acquirement of goods to consume our thoughts, and the paying for of these goods to consume our working life seems like more effort than its worth.

When I get to the end of my life I do not want to be sitting on a hoard of stuff, most of which will be old and useless and taken to the dump in the weeks following my death. I want to have the hoard in my mind, a hoard of wonderful experiences and happy times.

So I am always working toward a greater detachment from the things in my life. I get the tools that make my life more enjoyable and my daily efforts more efficient and leave it at that; whether that be a good washing machine to do the family laundry, or a good camera to satisfy my creative endeavors.