A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how things were so hard for her. She did not know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up. She was tired of fighting and struggling. It seemed as one problem was solved, a new one arose. Her mother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire. Soonthe pots came to boil. In the first she placedcarrots, in the second she placed eggs, and in the last she placed ground coffee beans. She let them sit and boil, without saying a word.In about twenty minutes she turned off the burners.She fished the carrots out and placed them in a bowl. She pulled the eggs out and placed them in a bowl. Then she ladled the coffee out and placed it in a bowl.Turning to her daughter, she asked, "Tell me, what do you see?""Carrots, eggs, and coffee," she replied. Her mother brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they were soft.The mother then asked the daughter to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observedthe hard boiled egg. Finally, the mother asked the daughter to sip the coffee. The daughter smiled as she tasted its rich aroma. The daughter then asked, "What does it mean, mother?"Her mother explained that each of these objects hadfaced the same adversity .. boiling water. Each reacted differently.The carrot went in strong, hard,and unrelenting. However, after being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak. The egg had been fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior, but after sitting through the boiling water, its inside became hardened.The ground coffee beans were unique, however. Afterthey were in the boiling water, they had changed the water."Which are you?" she asked her daughter. "When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond?Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?"Think of this: Which am I? Am I the carrot that seems strong, but with pain and adversity do I wilt and become soft and lose my strength?Am I the egg that starts with a malleable heart, butchanges with the heat? Did I have a fluid spirit, butafter a death, a breakup, a financial hardship or some other trial, have I become hardened and stiff? Does myshell look the same, but on the inside am I bitter andtough with a stiff spirit and hardened heart?Or am I like the coffee bean? The bean actuallychanges the hot water, the very circumstance that brings the pain. When the water gets hot, it releasesthe fragrance and flavor. If you are like the bean,w hen things are at their worst, you get better and change the situation around you. When the hour is the darkest and trials are their greatest, do you elevate yourself to another level? How do you handle adversity? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?May you have enough happiness to make you sweet, enough trials to make you strong, enough sorrow to keep you human and enough hope to make you happy.The happiest of people don't necessarily have the best of everything; they just make the most ofe verything that comes along their way. The brightest future will always be based on a forgotten past; youcan't go forward in life until you let go of your past failures and heartaches.When you were born, you were crying and everyonearound you was smiling. Live your life so at the end, you're the one who is smiling and every one around you is crying.

You might want to send this message to those people who mean something toyou (I JUST DID); to those who have touched your life in one way or another; to those who make you smile when you really need it; to those who make you see the brighter side of things when you are really down; to those whose friendship you appreciate; to those who are so meaningful in your life.I f you don't send it, you will just miss out on the opportunity to brighten someone's day with this message!"It's easier to build a child than repair an adult"Life-changing events do not happen by accident. They are not determined by the stars. They are not by chance. There is no such thing as chance. TheLord uses every situation in life to accomplish His purposes.