The Lake in Our Heart (contributed by Angie Ng & translated by Michelle Ong)

A monk asks his young disciple to put some salt into a cup and drink the saline solution.


'How does it taste?' he asked.


'Bitter!' the young man spitted it out and grimaced.


The master then asked him to put the remaining salt into a lake and take a sip of the lake water.


'How does it taste now?' he enquired again.


'Refreshing!'


'Have you tasted any saltiness?'


'Not at all.'


He took the opportunity to tell the young man the moral of the story:


'In life, suffering is like salt – not much but not little too. That's what we are bound to encounter. However, how much pain we experience depends on what type of vessel we put our suffering in….'


Thus, when you are suffering, open up you heart, DON'T BE A CUP, BE A LAKE.

~~~~~~
In my minds eyes I see the Master beckon me to repeat what his disciple has done.

I put all the salt I have collected over the years of misery I have gone through in the lake.

He gave me a nod of approval, confident of the outcome of my rite he prods: 'Go on, take a sip of the lake water.'

I comply but spit it out abruptly.

The whole lake has turned salty!

The old man looks at me with compassion and sighs. Finally, he shakes his head and turns away.

There is nothing he can do for me.