Zen Tales: The Frog and the Scorpion

By the blue lagoon on the South of Hogtown, there lived a young frog name, Beth.

Beth was a teacher and she loved teaching and she loved kids more than anything else in the whole world and she hoped that one day she would get married and have a bunch of tadpoles of her own. The only problem was that of all the frogs she had kissed, none turned out to be the prince of her dreams. So she went back to her work and her quiet life until that fateful day when a young scorpion stopped by the lagoon for a drink of water.

He was a very handsome fellow, with his metal blue eyes and his square jaw and all those muscles bulging from every part of his body. But he had a very bad reputation. His venomous sting had left a score of dead and wounded hearts in the bayou and Beth knew all the horror stories. So the moment she saw him she leaped to the safety of her lily pad.

- Did I scare you? Asked the scorpion with a broad smile on his face.
- No, not at all. Said the little frog with bravado.
- Why should I be afraid of you?
- Well, - said the scorpion – I have done some terrible things in my life, and if you would look down on me, I would totally understand. But now my wild and crazy bachelor days are gone. I found my calling working with children.

That was true too. Beth had heard of his work with the boy scouts and it was quite impressive. So they start talking about kids and about life and things and what do you know? He turned out to be a very intelligent, erudite, charming young fellow, nothing like the jerk she had heard he was. So he came back day after day, never making a pass, never saying or doing anything wrong. Of course, Beth kept the distance and didn’t even dream of letting him on her pad.

Then the scorpion didn’t show up for several days.
Beth started worrying and started calling all her friends but nobody knew where he was. She almost lost all her hope when he showed up.

- Where have you been? I was so worried. She said
- I didn’t know you cared.
He said with that killer smile on his face.
- Besides I left you a note on your lily pad.

She looked at the lily pad and there it was. A note explaining his departure. How embarrassing – and she thought all those bad things about him.

- Anyway, - the scorpion said – I thought that we should celebrate, do something really special tonight. What do you say?
- Of course! Said the little frog hardly concealing her excitement.
- I always wanted to see the other shore of the lagoon. Since I can’t swim I thought you could carry me over there for a romantic dinner.

The little frog stepped back in horror.
- I know what you are thinking – Said the scorpion – but just think about it logically. If I sting you I would die by drowning.
That makes perfect sense. Thought the little frog and although her instincts told her no her mouth said:

- Ok! Hop on.
He jumped on her back and she took off as fast as she could.
It was a beautiful summer evening and in the fiery sunset, the lagoon looked magical.

Beth slowed down. She could feel his body pressed against her and that electricity flowing melting them into one blissful union.
And then when all her doubts were gone and she was feeling confident and secure. Wham! He stung her. The poison rushing to her heart, she muttered her last words.

- How could you do this to me? How could you do this to us? We both are going to pay for this dearly. I thought you loved me. I thought you changed…
- Sorry, babe! – he said – I am a scorpion, I can’t change.
That is my nature.

Zen Tales: The Swan and the Swine

Once upon a time in the little community of Hogtown, in the bayou country, lived a little swan and her family of pigs.

I know what you are thinking "How come a family of pigs can have a swan daughter?" but let me tell you, it is more common than you think.

The pigs were quite wealthy and offered their swan daughter the best education money can buy.
The little swan was not only pretty but also very gifted and soon grew up into the most beautiful young lady in town. (Although some of the older pigs thought of her independence and free spirit as unbecoming of a young sow.)

After finishing college she thought of starting a career but her handsome hog boyfriend proposed to her and in the excitement of the moment she accepted. (She also wanted to make her pig parents proud and happy by marrying the most eligible bachelor in town.)

But married life did not turn the way she had predicted.
Away from the protective shield of her parents, she found herself being totally unprepared for the porcine life.

She tried very hard to play the role of a perfect swine but she was failing miserably.
She even went to the best pig specialists looking for help.

They pluck her feathers, broke her wings and cover her in sticky mud, but all their efforts to change her did not help.
On the surface she kind of looked more swiney, but inside she felt more and more inadequate.
She looked at the swine around her all happy whirling in the mud and dreamed she could be like that even for one day.

Her husband seemed to be very understanding of her shortcomings and try to cover up their family problems buy putting up the front of a perfect marriage.

The plans of her adolescence turned to dust.
She gave up all her dreams and she gave up all her hope.
All she was capable of is to survive and carry her pain.

With broken wings, crawling through the swamp she keeps on living, until one fateful day when she met an ancient turtle.
This old hermit basking in the sun atop of a mossy rock had on his face the most content smile she had ever seen.
Somehow it looked like he did not care about the filthy mud he was living in.
Somehow it did not affect him.

She approaches the old man and asked him.
- Why do I have to suffer all my life like this?
Why can’t I be just like the other swine, thick and slow, stupid and coarse?
Oh, why is God so cruel to me, why did he have to put this curse on me?
Or has he made a mistake?

- Oh no, my dear. Said the old man. God doesn’t make mistakes.
We do.
You are a swan and not a swine.
Your life is what you get if you choose to crawl when you are meant to fly.

The Pearl of Wisdom

This is the story of little Ozzy.

He was the 4456th son of Mother of Pearl and of all his brother and sisters he was the smallest oyster in the bunch.

He was always a little slow – as oysters go – and nobody thought he would accomplish anything in life.

As expected, when the time came to pearl out little Ozzy turned out to be a failure.

All his brothers and sisters proudly displayed their pearls but no matter how hard he tried little Ozzy came out empty.

He was the laughing stock of the oyster culture and ashamed of himself he decided to run away and save his family from the humiliation.

One dark night he sneaked out and went into the open ocean.

When the first rays of the sun started shining, tired of pulling his shell all night, he stopped by a big rock and started sobbing.

- Hey! What’s with the crying?

It turns out that the rock was just an old turtle doing his morning meditation.

- I am a total failure and disgrace to my family. I am an oyster without a pearl.

Would you please eat me and put me out of my misery?

- Well, I am a vegetarian – said the turtle – But I tell you what.

I will give you the pearl of wisdom so you wouldn’t be a pearless oyster anymore.

- The pearl of wisdom, what is that? – asked Ozzy

- It is the most magnificent, amazing, perfect pearl in the ocean. - said the turtle.

It will give infinite wisdom to anyone that wears it. Just open up and say aaa!

As Ozzy open up his shell the turtle picked up a round pebble and shoved it in.

- How do you feel? – Asked the turtle

- Wow! That feels great, big and heavy. I shell go back and made my family proud.

- Wait, wait! You cannot go back to your family. – Said the turtle.

- This is a magic pearl and if you show it to anyone it will turn into a rock.

Very disappointed but very happy at the same time, little Ozzy thanked the turtle and left to look for his fortune in the underwater world.

He decided to be a monk and spend the rest of his life helping the poor and the sick.

Ozzy went from place to place imparting his new found wisdom to anyone he met.

Soon his reputation and fame grew and creatures from all over the ocean, the poor and the rich, the humble and the powerful, came seeking his wise advice.

He was a great teacher and counsel and many generations of disciples followed him.

In time his pearl of wisdom became legend.

After years and years of travel, feeling that his end is near Ozzy decided to go back home.

News of his return traveled fast and all the oysters, his brother and sisters and his little nephews were waiting with great anticipation.

It was a triumphant return and they gave him the highest honors.

They all gather around in the town square to listen to his life story.

At the end, his nephews shouted.

- Uncle Ozzy can we see the pearl of wisdom, can we see it pleeease?

Oh, what the heck. Said Ozzy to himself. After all, I don’t need it anymore.

So he opened up its shell for the first time since he had met the turtle.

And there it was, whiter and more radiant than the angels' skin, glowing in brilliant radiance:

The most magnificent, amazing, perfect pearl in the ocean.

Happiness

The day was over and I was hurrying to grab a meal before putting my lonely and tired bones to rest.

On the deserted street I found a twenty dollar bill. “A lucky gift! A better meal.”
I thought to myself, my hart delighted with joy.

But then a shadow covered my soul. My gain was somebody else’s loss.

I asked myself should I rejoice or should I feel sorrow, for that could have been somebody else’s meal.

So in my shame I threw away the twenty dollar bill. My heart rejoiced again.

My loss could be somebody else’s meal and in a tiny way I made this world a better place.

But then the shadow covered me again. That wasn’t charity was just my ego vanity.

That money wasn’t mine to start with and in my deed I did not lose or gain.

So, in desperation I emptied my pockets and threw away my money…

Tonight I’m going hungry.

I’m going to a restless sleep with an empty belly an empty soul.

How to cross a river

Early in the morning a poor fisherman is walking to his boat.
On the bank of the river, looking like a Buddha statue covered in the golden light of the dawn, a young monk is deep in his meditation.
As the fisherman approaches, the monk gets up and starts crossing the river, walking on the surface of the water.
Seeing him, the fisherman stops and nods.
- No, no, no! You are doing it all wrong!
The young monk turns around surprised and looks at the raggedy fisherman.
- Come, follow me. I will show you how to do it. Says the fisherman.
The monk follows him in silence to the old wooden boat where they get in.
The fisherman picks up the oars and starts rowing. When the boat reaches the other shore of the river, the fisherman says.
- See monk. This is the proper way to cross the river.

The Man Who Slowed Down The World

Once upon a time there was a young prince very much in love with a young princess.
Everything was great with their relationship except for one little detail.
The young princess was always late.
And I mean that in the nice sense :)

She was always late for her dates with the prince, always showed up late at the balls and she was constantly late at her work.
Which made her earn the nickname “the Tardy Princess”

It was one Friday evening when the Tardy Princess showed up late at the prince’s apartment causing them to be late for the evening social gathering causing a lot of funny remarks from the prince’s close friends.
The prince took the jabs chin up, with a forced smile on his face but some where in his mind he knew that something had to change.

That night the prince woke up in the middle of the night from a dreadful nightmare.
He new the next day it was a very important day – he was planning to introduce the Tardy Princess to his family – and everything had to work out as planed.

But how could he make the Tardy Princess not to be late even for one day?
Or maybe, just maybe there was another solution to his problem.
And then an idea hit him.
If he couldn’t make the princess hurry up, he will make the world slow down!

So he gently got out of the bed without waking up the princess, took her watch from the night stand and set it 30 minutes ahead.
Then he did the same thing with his watch, with the alarm clock and every other clock in his apartment.
Then he went back to sleep with a smile on his face.

The next day they woke up and did everything that they have planed and even if they were always late nobody complained because everybody else thought they were in time.
They went to his parents, they went to a concert, and they had a wonderful time without the princes noticing anything until she went back to work.

That Monday morning – to everybody’s surprised – the Tardy Princess showed up at her office in time.
It was at that moment when the Tardy Princess noticed that her watch was 30 minutes fast.
She called the prince and told him the story and he acted very surprised.
“Maybe you need a new battery” He said.
And with that, the whole story was forgotten.

Well, not completely forgotten because till today I still have my watch set 5 minutes fast – I mean the price has his watch set 5 minutes fast – Or as he like to say “My watch is fine but I have slowed down the world 5 minutes”…

…I know you might thing this story is kind of silly but trust me, it is not.
If you just happen to find yourself in a constant rush through the day, you might try slowing down the world instead.
All you have to do is set your watch 5 minutes faster :)

An old story

You all know the saying:
"It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God."
But some times a rich man makes it through, like the one in the following story:

Once upon a time an orphan boy grew up as an apprentice into a merchant’s house.
After the demise of his benefactor the young man went into the world and started his own trade business.
Soon his fortune started to rise and money started to fill his coffers.

The young man never forgot his humble beginning and he helped all the people in need: The sick and the poor, the crippled and the destitute, and as his wealth grew his generosity increased as well.
Good fortune follow him in every enterprise and soon he became legendary both for his riches as well for his good deeds.

But after years and years of work he grew old and pretty soon he contemplate his inevitable end.
The problem was that he never got married, he never had any children and he did not know of any relatives.
So he began to pray to God every day for the remaining of his life.

One night God heard his plea and came to him in a dream.
“What can I do fro you my good man?” Asked God.
“I have worked hard all my life and now my wealth is going to be taken by strangers.
I would like you to let me take it with me when I die, o great and just God!”
God pondered for a while and then responded.
“You know that you can't take it with you, but considering your life of good deeds I will make an exception. See that chest in the corner? You can take it with you when you die.”

So the old man sold all his possessions and bought as much gold bars as to fill up his treasure chest.
Not long after that the angel of death came to take him to paradise.

At the pearly gates St Peter seeing the heavy chest stopped the old man
“Wait a minute – you can not bring that in here. It is against the rules!”
“But God granted me a special permission.” Said the old man.
“Let me check that out.” Said the saint and looked into his admission log.
“Yep, you’re right, there is a note here saying you can bring a chest with worldly possessions, but I will have to check so it doesn’t have any unholy content.”
“Sure thing” Said the old man and lifted the chest lid.

St Peter looked inside the chest at the glimmering bars of gold and his eyes popped out in amazement. He turned to the old man in disbelief:
“You brought in pavement?”

Zen Tales - The Golden Goose

In a sunny suburb of Hogtown, there once lived two young geese.
Although since the day they were hatched , Brittany and Jessica were totally different, they grew up as best friends and remained best friends for the rest of their lives.
Brittany was a tomboy, curious and adventurous, always getting in trouble.
Jessica was the quiet type. She loved to play with her dolls more than anything else, but when Brittany called she was always ready to follow.
In school, Brittany was the most popular goose, even though Jessica was as pretty. Jessica always stood behind while Brittany took the center stage.
But Brittany loved Jessica sincerely and fully hearted and they always felt like sisters for each other.
In college Brittany excelled. She was driven to be the best and her parents encouraged and supported her ambitions. Jessica was not interested that much in academic achievements. She preferred to spend her time and energy on more creative ways.
After college, Jessica took a teaching job and pretty soon after that she married her high school sweetheart and moved into a white picket fenced house in the suburb.
Brittany never considered marriage, at least not at that time. She dreamed of a brilliant career and with her parents support she left Hogtown and headed for the big city.
She got an entry level position with a prestigious firm and was ready to climb at the top of the world but the world was not ready for her ascent. She married one of the older executives at the firm but it didn’t work the way she had planed it and it all ended in a messy divorce and her departure from the firm.
She got herself together and started another job at a startup company. She vouched never to get involved with another guy until her career took off.
Meanwhile Jessica had her second, third and forth kid and was busy changing diapers and treating night fevers. After that there was the preschools and the kindergartens and only after all the kids were in school she decided to go back to her teaching career.
Brittany was working very hard too. She pushed herself and pushed herself harder and harder until she was promoted as manager of the egg producing line but after that her career hit a brick wall and no matter how many eggs she was producing she never got another promotion.
Being a career goose was much harder than she had anticipated.
It was by the time Jessica’s kids were ready for college when Brittany had her firs gold egg. It was an instant sensation and it made front page on all newspapers.
Her career took of like a rocket and she started breaking all glass ceilings.
There was a slight problem. The pressure of producing golden egg after golden egg was taking all her time and energy. Now that her career was taking off she had to once again postpone having a family.
Jessica’s kids finished their educations and started their own life and pretty soon Jessica became a grand mother. It was back to changing diapers and treating night fevers.
Meanwhile Brittany reached the peak of her career. After years and years of making golden egg after golden egg she was promoted president of the company.
Although she had some occasionally romantic encounters, she never thought of getting married again. She was too comfortable being alone and marriage couldn’t offer her anything more that she had.
Soon after that her retirement came. It was a big festivity and all the heads of the industry and even some preeminent politicians came to celebrate the occasion.
She was a pioneer and a legend. People did not call her Brittany any longer.
She was simply known as “The Golden Goose”
They all shuck her hand and took pictures. For her achievements she received a golden watch and after that she went home.
Jessica reached her retirement too. It was a smaller festivity but all her friends, children and grand children showed up. They no longer called her Jessica, they all called her simply “Mother Goose”. They all kissed her and took pictures and after that they all went home.
That night Brittany was sitting in her penthouse apartment overlooking the big city and for the first time she felt alone. She wandered what ever happened to her good friend Jessica and on the spur of the moment she decided to go back for a surprise visit.
The next day she packed her things and her golden watch and took the first plain to Hogtown.
It was a joyous moment when they reunited. They hugged and kissed and laughed like two little girls. They went into the hose and spent hours telling stories. At the end Brittany told Jessica about the retirement celebration and pulled her golden watch out of her bag and showed it to Jessica.
- Very shiny. – said Jessica
- Does it say “I love you” when you hold it?