Laying bricks is not easy
You think all you have to do is put some mortar down, put a brick on top, and make it level
But when you put the mortar down, you put the brick on top there's always one end it's higher than the others
So you have to tap that end down
That end goes down another end goes up
So you have to tap that end down
Then it moves out of line, so you gotta tap it into line again then the first end goes up
It takes forever to get that brick straight
But one thing which I had which all monks have is patience
Doesn't matter how long it takes, I gotta make sure that every brick is perfect
So, that's what I did
Every brick I made sure if it wasn't right I'd take it off and start again
When I finished my first brick wall, I looked at it and I was so disappointed
I was so shocked. I was so distressed!
I'd missed two bricks!
All the other ones were nice and level but two bricks were this awful angle!
And they spoiled the whole wall
I tried to take them out but the cement was just so hard, they just would not come out
So I talked to the other monk with me and I said
"Can we buy some dynamite?
Can I blow up that wall and start again?"
And he said no
I wanted to destroy that wall because it's- I made a mess of the first building project I did at that monastery
I was so disappointed I- I saw it every day!
Every day I went past that wall I was so upset because I saw the two back bricks and my mistakes
When visitors came I always managed to take them somewhere else
So they wouldn't see my mistakes because your mistakes you're always embarrassed about
But one day a visitor came
I was with them, they saw that wall and what they said was
"That's a beautiful wall"
I said to them "Are you crazy? Are you blind? Have you left your glasses in the car?
Can't you see the two bad bricks?"
And they said "Yes. I can see the two bad bricks
But I can also see the 998 good bricks as well."
That hit me like a brick
I realized my mistake
Not only in that wall but in life as well
Just too often all we see is our two mistakes
And you become blind to anything else other than what is wrong
That's what was happening to me
Every time I passed that wall my eyes would just go to my faults
My mistakes
I could not see anything other than my two mistakes
I realized in life every time I saw a tragedy in life
Every time I saw someone being abused or hurt
There were 998 times, or probably much more, when people were being kind and caring and beautiful and wonderful and loving
And generous and inspiring
Most people are actually pessimists
A pessimist is someone like myself in those two months who always sees the bad bricks in life
The optimist is the person who only sees 998 good bricks
The realist is one who sees both
Yeah
You think all you have to do is put some mortar down, put a brick on top, and make it level
But when you put the mortar down, you put the brick on top there's always one end it's higher than the others
So you have to tap that end down
That end goes down another end goes up
So you have to tap that end down
Then it moves out of line, so you gotta tap it into line again then the first end goes up
It takes forever to get that brick straight
But one thing which I had which all monks have is patience
Doesn't matter how long it takes, I gotta make sure that every brick is perfect
So, that's what I did
Every brick I made sure if it wasn't right I'd take it off and start again
When I finished my first brick wall, I looked at it and I was so disappointed
I was so shocked. I was so distressed!
I'd missed two bricks!
All the other ones were nice and level but two bricks were this awful angle!
And they spoiled the whole wall
I tried to take them out but the cement was just so hard, they just would not come out
So I talked to the other monk with me and I said
"Can we buy some dynamite?
Can I blow up that wall and start again?"
And he said no
I wanted to destroy that wall because it's- I made a mess of the first building project I did at that monastery
I was so disappointed I- I saw it every day!
Every day I went past that wall I was so upset because I saw the two back bricks and my mistakes
When visitors came I always managed to take them somewhere else
So they wouldn't see my mistakes because your mistakes you're always embarrassed about
But one day a visitor came
I was with them, they saw that wall and what they said was
"That's a beautiful wall"
I said to them "Are you crazy? Are you blind? Have you left your glasses in the car?
Can't you see the two bad bricks?"
And they said "Yes. I can see the two bad bricks
But I can also see the 998 good bricks as well."
That hit me like a brick
I realized my mistake
Not only in that wall but in life as well
Just too often all we see is our two mistakes
And you become blind to anything else other than what is wrong
That's what was happening to me
Every time I passed that wall my eyes would just go to my faults
My mistakes
I could not see anything other than my two mistakes
I realized in life every time I saw a tragedy in life
Every time I saw someone being abused or hurt
There were 998 times, or probably much more, when people were being kind and caring and beautiful and wonderful and loving
And generous and inspiring
Most people are actually pessimists
A pessimist is someone like myself in those two months who always sees the bad bricks in life
The optimist is the person who only sees 998 good bricks
The realist is one who sees both
Yeah
( Zakaraka & Imaginomics )
www.ChordsAZ.com