There was a man who had four sons. He wanted his sons to learn
not to judge
things too quickly. So he sent them each on a quest, in turn, to go
and look
at a pear tree that was a great distance away. The first son went
in the
winter, the second in the spring, the third in summer, and the
youngest son
in the fall.
When they had all gone and come back, he called them together to
describe
what they had seen.
The first son said that the tree was ugly, bent, and twisted. The
second son
said no-it was covered with green buds and full of promise. The
third son
disagreed, he said it was laden with blossoms that smelled so sweet
and
looked so beautiful, it was the most graceful thing he had ever
seen. The
last son disagreed with all of them; he said it was ripe and
drooping with
fruit, full of life and fulfillment.
The man then explained to his sons that they were all right,
because they
had each seen but ONLY one season in the tree's life. He told them
that you
cannot judge a tree, or a person, by only one season, and that the
essence
of who they are - and the pleasure, joy, and love that come from
that life-
can only be measured at the end, when all the seasons are up.
If you give up when it's winter, you will miss the promise of your
spring,
the beauty of your summer, fulfillment of your fall. Don't let the
pain of
one season destroy the joy of all the rest.
Don't judge life by one difficult season. Persevere through the
difficult
patches and better times are sure to come some time or later.
Author: Unknown
"Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the
moments
that take our breath away."
~ Say what you want to say when you have the time, because tomorrow
maybe one day late, Our deepest regrets are words unsaid and things
undone ~