There's an old Chinese painting that shows three wise men standing around a vat of vinegar. Each man has dipped his finger into the vinegar and tasted it. The first man wears a sour expression. The second is frowning at its bitterness. The third man is smiling.
The first man is the type of person who thinks the vinegar ought to be changed to better suit his ideals. He would say that whoever makes the vinegar should alter their methods so that it tastes more like he expected it to taste.
The second is the kind of person who would prefer to avoid vinegar altogether from now on. He would point out that if one can manage to avoid vinegar, its bitterness would not interfere with more important things.
The third man, however, would say that trying to change the nature of something or trying to avoid it altogether is the wrong approach. Instead, he would say, we should enjoy what life has to offer. Fighting against the taste of vinegar is a hopeless task; it will still taste the same no matter what you do. But, if you learn to enjoy it, its taste will no longer bother you, and you will have wasted no effort becoming happier.
Life can sometimes be difficult to enjoy, especially at times like these when finals are looming and there's no shortage of obstacles making every one of these last few days miserable. It feels like trying to paddle a canoe up a raging river; you know that eventually it's going to push you downstream into calmer waters anyway, but for some reason you're struggling rather than just letting the current carry you along.
It can never really hurt to stop what you're doing for a moment and look around at what's going on. It seems to be ingrained in our culture that the right thing to do in times of hardship is to keep your eyes on the ground, put your back into it, and keep slaving away.
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Instead, the next time you start to feel overwhelmed, maybe you should set your yoke aside for a minute and take a look at the field you've been plowing. Maybe you're a lot further along than you thought, and it's okay to take a short lemonade break. Besides, if you're too focused on the unpleasant details, how are you going to know how much further you have to go?
It turns out that life is about as enjoyable as we make it. Like the vinegar tasters, if you go in expecting it to be something it isn't, you're only going to be disappointed. If you are willing to accept what comes your way and see the good in it, you'll never have to worry about it disappointing you.
So for those of you feeling weighed down by your finals and your term papers, and especially those of you dealing with all the additional chaos of graduation, don't forget that the end is just a few days away. Don't feel obligated to spend every waking moment wrestling miserably with the subjects you don't like. On the other hand, don't let it drive you away from the books either.
Keep in mind that it's always easier to do something you enjoy than something you hate. While you may never learn to love the classes giving you the most trouble, being resentful or angry about having to take them certainly won't help.
The same applies to everything in life. The holiday season and start of a new year have always been good times for taking a step back, relaxing, and reflecting on what's going on in our crazy lives. This winter break, take a look at what's bothering you because you're working at it from the wrong angle and that's bothering you because things aren't getting done. You may find that you can fix both problems by doing what you want to do rather than trying to fit into the molds of other peoples' expectations.
Holidays are also supposed to be times when people set aside the religious and political beliefs that keep them at odds with their fellow human beings and come together in celebration.
Families and friends forget their arguments for a short while and concentrate on their what they had in common instead. Wouldn't it be great if every day were a holiday like that? Then again, if we can enjoy our vinegar once or twice a year, what's stopping us from smiling the rest of the time?
by Craig A. Butler
Daily Lobo Columnist
