Good luck...bad luck...who knows.

I just wanted to share with all of you my favorite story, saying, and mantra for my life. I heard it once as a child. It was told by the priest, at the church of the school I attended. It goes some thing like this...

It was fall in China, harvest fell upon the people in this small town and an old man stood on his porch with his son looking across their field. "Father, this year must be the best harvest we have ever had! Our crops grow bountiful and large. We must be so thankful for the good luck we have." To this the old man looked at his son, smiled, and said, "Good luck, bad luck...who knows."

The next day the two men woke up the sun as they were getting an early start to their day. When the walked outside instead of finding the morning dew garnishing their farm they found their plants trampled, eaten, destroyed. The young man exclaimed, "Father, we have lost everything! We will surely starve this winter. We worked so hard and it was all taken from us. But how angry I am! It is all bad luck!" To this the old man looked at his son, smiled, and said, "Good luck, bad luck...who knows."

When the next day arrived the young man found his father, sitting on the porch swaying in his rocking chair stroking his long white beard. "Father, how can you rise so early when all is lost?" asked the son not quite awake and aware. At that momentht e son looked out across the field and saw the cause of his fathers contenment. A herd of horses had come down from the mountains in the night and had been the cause of the ruin of their crops. The galliant horses walked slowly, with full bellies, having their way with the toils of the season. "Father, the horses! We can break the horses and sell them at market, they will fetch far more than ten times what our crops would have made us!" All the towns people got word of the old man's good fortune and came to see. "What wonderful fortune you and you son have. You are lucky to have such fine animals for yourselves," said the towns folk. To this the old man looked at them, smiled, and said, "Good luck, bad luck...who knows."

Because the old man was... well, old the son would have to break all the horses himself. So off he went. He built a pen and spent the whole day gathering the herd and at nightfall started to break in the first of many, many horses. Much to the dismay of both the men he quickly grew tired. "I won't give up!" shouted the young man and mounted the mountain of a horse. At the very next moment the horse grew violent kicking and bucking and threw the young man to the ground with a vorascious thud. All was silent, the young man lay motionless in the mud groaning in agony. He had broken both legs when he landed and the old man hieved and strained to get him into the house to ten to him. "Father, I am sorry, I have failed us both, I am riddled with bad luck." To this the old man looked at his son, smiled, and said, "Good luck, bad luck...who knows."

Once again the fate and fortune of the old and young man raced across the mouth of every man, woman, and child of the town. One woman exclaimed, "Those two must be cursed. They lose evrything that is important to them. All they'll ever have is each other. Look at us, we have it all." Upon hearing this the son was sadened and shamed. The old man was too but yet to this the old man looked at his son, smiled, and said, "Good luck, bad luck...who knows."

This story was during a very turbulent time in Chinas history. Invaders from the west had been taking farms hostage, burning crops, and killing the Chinese at will. The govenment knew that they has to strengthen their army to defend their land and people. Official went from town to town removing all young men of age from each and every family. Sons we stolen to be soldiers right out from under their family's cries and hugs. When the Army officials arrived at the old man's home they went in to take away his son. "This boy is a cripple, he cannot go to war!" the official stormed out of the house. Overheard for miles could you hear mothers calling out to their lost sons, and the old man was the only one in town who was able to look at his son, smile, and say, "Good luck, bad luck...who knows."

So, in the big scheme of life when something hurts, look for the good that can come from it. When things are good, work hard to remember and treasure those times. Its only in hindsight will we ever be able to tell... good luck...bad luck... who knows.