Duality

How difficult it can be to distinguish good from bad.  Fortune from misfortune.  The right path from the wrong.  So often, to our surprise and consternation, we find these opposites to be entwined.  Inseparable.

There’s a parable that surfaces in various forms in various cultures that speaks to this.  The version that comes most readily to my mind (because, in our rare free moments, when we’re too tired for anything but TV, we Netflix Northern Exposure, which is quite possibly the most wonderful show ever made) is this one, from the NX episode “Bolt from the Blue,” as related by character Marilyn Whirlwind:

The Warrior

My uncle once told me about a warrior who had a fine stallion. Everybody said how lucky he was to have such a horse.

 ”Maybe” he said.

 One day the stallion ran off. The people said the warrior was unlucky.

 ”Maybe” he said.

 The next day the stallion returned, leading a string of fine ponies. The people said it was very lucky.

 ”Maybe” the warrior said.

 Later, the warrior’s son was thrown from one of the ponies and broke his leg. The people said it was unlucky.

 ”Maybe” the warrior said.

 The next week, the chief lead a war party against another tribe. Many young men were killed. But, because of his broken leg, the warrior’s son was left behind, and so was spared.

* * *

When faced with events that teach us that good and bad are two sides of the same coin, learning to accept their duality but to focus on the good almost always makes for a happier life, I do believe.