There’s an old zen tale I keep referring to, but whenever I want to share it with someone I never find it online.

As my friend Jimena would say, “if you can’t find it online, make it and share it”, so here it goes…

A zen master and his pupil walk through the woods at night. It is pitch black, and the weather is terrible: it is cold, windy, rain is pouring…

The zen master, smiling, says:

What a beautiful night, and what a nice weather!

The pupil, who can’t believe what he just heard, asks the master

Are you out of your fucking mind? How can you possibly think this weather is nice?

To which the zen master, still smiling, answers:

This weather is perfect, because it’s the only one we have.

Which reminds me… if you still haven’t read The Tao of Pooh, by Benjamin Hoff, maybe it’s a good time to do that now. I know, learning the ancient principles of Taoism from a toy bear sounds ludicrous, but bear with me for a second and give it a chance.