I love fables. I think they are such an amazing way to share a lesson. I ran across two recently that I thought were awesome, so I’m going to share those today. I also posted my personal favorite fable back on Cinco de Mayo here if you want more. 🙂
#1: “You never really know for sure..”
(Quoted from Solve for Happy, by Mo Gawdat, pg. 121):
“Arabic folk culture tells the story of a wise old man whose son went to the well one day when the heat was most extreme. To his surprise, he found a beautiful, tame, black Arabian horse there. Everyone in the village envied the young man, and he started to win all of the races with his new horse. The villagers told the old man, “Your boy is blessed with good fortune.” To which the old man responded, “You never know for sure.” A week later the boy fell off the horse and broke his legs, so they rushed to the old man and said, “Your boy’s good luck has turned bad!” To which he responded, “You never really know for sure.” A week later, a rival village suddenly attacked, all the able young men were drafted, and many were killed. The man’s son was spared.”
#2: “Don’t be quick to judge….”
A young couple moved into a new neighborhood.
The next morning while they were eating breakfast, the young woman saw her neighbor hanging the washing outside.
“That laundry is not very clean; she doesn’t know how to wash correctly. Perhaps she needs better laundry soap.”
Her husband looked on, remaining silent.
Every time her neighbor hung her washing out to dry, the young woman made the same comments.
A month later, the woman was surprised to see a nice clean wash on the line and said to her husband, “Look, she’s finally learned how to wash correctly. I wonder who taught her this?”
The husband replied, “I got up early this morning and cleaned our windows.”
And so it is with life… What we see when watching others depends on the clarity of the window through which we look.
So don’t be too quick to judge others, especially if your perspective of life is clouded by anger, jealousy, negativity or unfulfilled desires.
“Judging a person does not define who they are. It defines who you are.”
— Jonathan Kestenbaum
I just think these are great. The first one is such a fantastic reminder to just….let it be! We don’t know which way life is going to take us. What seems good, might not be. What seems bad, might not be! I love the father’s calm wisdom and patience as he doesn’t overreact each time the story changes.
The second one- I wish the whole world could hear!! Our own lives and perspectives inevitably cloud our judgment, though most of us don’t realize it and certainly can’t admit it. It’s also great to remember that there’s always another side to the story. What the woman was so SURE she was seeing as the truth just….wasn’t.
I love little tales like these. Hope you enjoyed them too! Have an amazing day. đź’“
(Photo above: another beautiful sky in my neighborhood, this time from my walk on Monday night.)
Daily Gratitude:
I am grateful that Ivan is able to cut the boys’ hair. He always has- I think they have been to a salon 1x maybe in their whole lives. He generally always does a really great job and it saves us time + money! I wouldn’t dare try, so I’m grateful he has the skills. 🙂
GRATEFUL KAE 
I hadn't heard either of these fables and I enjoyed both of them – great message in both!
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love these two. on the first one it tells a lot about honouring our own life and choice. Nothing we see in others life is apparent, and we shouldn't care as it's their lives.on the second it's so true. many times when we see things on others, it's a reflection of our own thoughts and biases. fables are great wisdom for kids and adults!
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