A story from Buddhism
“What a contrast”, the crow thought in envy, comparing the Swan’s perfect white feathers to its own jet black ones. He hated being the color that he was and wanted nothing more than to be as white as the Swan.
Foolishly it thought that the reason the Swan got to be so beautifully white was because it spent all day in the water, so if he was to become the same as the swan, he would have start spending all his days in the water also.
So for many days and nights, he spent all his time soaking in the waters of the lake. Even when it got cold, he refused to get out, determined to stay in until his feathers turned white.
One moonlit night, an owl flew by and saw the crow shivering in the lake. “What are you doing?” the owl asked.
Foolishly it thought that the reason the Swan got to be so beautifully white was because it spent all day in the water, so if he was to become the same as the swan, he would have start spending all his days in the water also.
So for many days and nights, he spent all his time soaking in the waters of the lake. Even when it got cold, he refused to get out, determined to stay in until his feathers turned white.
One moonlit night, an owl flew by and saw the crow shivering in the lake. “What are you doing?” the owl asked.
“I want to be as white as a swan and so I have to sit here until my colour changes”.
As soon as the owl heard, it burst into hysterical laughter, “You silly fool! You can sit there till you die you’ll never be as white as a swan! You are a crow and crows are black. You have got to accept what you are”
The crow contemplated for a while on the wise words of the owl. Looking down at his body, he could see that what the owl said was absolutely true. He had been sitting in the water for many days and yet his colour is just the same as it always was. Feeling very foolish, the crow realised that if the owl didn’t fly by that night, he might still be sitting in the water and die from either starvation or hypothermia.
The crow contemplated for a while on the wise words of the owl. Looking down at his body, he could see that what the owl said was absolutely true. He had been sitting in the water for many days and yet his colour is just the same as it always was. Feeling very foolish, the crow realised that if the owl didn’t fly by that night, he might still be sitting in the water and die from either starvation or hypothermia.
“Happiness does not consist in things, but in the relish we have of them.”
Do not educate children to be rich ; Educate them to be happy ; So that when they grow up they will know the value of things and not just the price.
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