Once there was a king who held a contest for someone to be his personal assistant. Several villagers came to fill the position. The King gave them all the same task: they had to take a pot and empty the lake with it. “There is one catch,” said the King, “The pot has a hole in it, and you cannot cover or plug the hole. You must use the pot as is.”
Many of the villagers left at the sight of the pot. Other villagers tried but left from the frustration of water leaving the hole. But there was one man that kept at the task. He filled the pot with water and took it on land, watching the water fall to the ground. He became frustrated but he kept repeating his action, filling the pot with water and letting fall to the ground. Eventually, his efforts paid off and when all the water was gone out of the lake, he noticed a huge shiny diamond at the bottom of the lake. The man gave the diamond to the King. The King gave the diamond to the man as a gift for his patience. The King also gave the man the position as his personal assistant.
In times of crisis, the most important thing we need to learn is patience. We cannot control what will happen in life. Like the man, sometimes we are given a pot with a hole in it, and we must persevere even when we are frustrated. Face with frustration, and stuck at home, I decided to start gardening.
I got sod, lavender, and other types of plants and flowers. My favorite flower that I purchased was a hibiscus. I love saying the name hibiscus and tasting it in food and drinks. Hibiscus makes me happy. When I bought the hibiscus, I saw buds, but no flower. I told myself to water and watch. After two weeks, every other flower I had bloomed except the hibiscus, and I was getting frustrated.
As I sat on the couch frustrated, I read the news of people protesting about being quarantined because of the COVID -19 virus. I thought to myself, “How ridiculous. Why can’t these people stay in their houses, enjoy their families and environment, and just wait?” Then I went outside and watered the grass and garden. I noticed that my hibiscus still had not bloomed, and I thought to myself, just enjoy it for the beautiful flower it is and wait.
The very next day my diamond shone; the hibiscus bloomed. I am so excited for the others to flourish as well, but I will be patient.
Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished. Lao Tzu
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