As it is New Year, I suspect many people are making resolutions. I have fought hard against making my usual resolutions like 'eat better', 'practice yoga more and meditate for longer' etc. Instead I am going to simply try to accept my flaws and other peoples, below is a reading which my Mum has been doing in her yoga classes since the 80s. Back then, there was no Facebook and Twitter so her students would collect readings and poems that they thought the group would enjoy and Mum would read them and she still does. She has passed a large bundle over to me which I have been going through and reading also adding some I have found to the collection. She gave me the Professor and the Mayonnaise Jar one ages ago and I notice it has been doing the rounds on Facebook for a few years, I suspect it is a pretty old story as the copy my Mum has is pretty old - but of course the message remains the same.
The reading below is a favourite of mine - I have no idea who wrote it originally but I hope you enjoy it......
An elderly woman had two large pots, each hung on the ends of a pole which she carried across her neck. One of the pots had a crack in it while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water.
At the end of the long walks from the stream to the house, the cracked pot arrived only half full. For a full 2 years this went on daily, with the woman bringing home only one and a half pots of water. Of course the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments. But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and miserable that it could only do half of what it had been made to do.
After 2 years of what it perceived to bitter failure it spoke to the woman one day by the stream. "I am ashamed of myself, because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your house."
The old woman smiled "Did you notice that there are flowers on your side of the path, but not on the other pot's side? That's because I have always known about your flaw, so I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back, you water them. For 2 years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate the table, without you being just the way you are, there would not be this beauty to grace the house"
Each of us has our own unique flaw. But it's the cracks and flaws we have that make our lives together so very interesting and rewarding.
You've just got to take each person for what they are and see the good in them and also accept your own flaws as chances are, there is someone who loves you for them......
So - to all of my crackpot friends, have a great day and remember to smell the flowers on your side of the path!!
Namaste and Happy 2013! (edited and updated to say Happy 2019)
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