Counseling Services of Portland
Outsmart
depression, anxiety and stress.
Suzie Wolfer LCSW 503-224-3318 suzie@suziewolfer.com
The Dilemma of the Acorn . . .
An acorn fell from a magnificent oak tree. It landed on fertile ground, content and safe inside its shell.
Then one day, after the sun shone and the rains had showered, as spring turned into summer. a strange thing happened. The acorn started to outgrow its shell. Its shell started to crack.
The grand design coded deep in every cell of the acorn, the blueprint of the oak tree, began to reveal itself. The acorn quivered in its dilemma – to hold on or to let go. Both seemed impossible. Then in a moment of insight, it perceived a new possibility. As it decided to relax its hold, the cap popped off, and the swollen shell fell away from the tender seed.
The acorn’s old identity fell away with it's shell. Tiny roots searched for the cool darkness of the earth . . . And after a rest, a tender green shoot emerged from deep within the heart of the acorn and reached for the sun.
As the acorn opened, the oak tree took its place.
In 1957, to make room for the Port of Bangkok, a small temple and its brown clay Buddha were being relocated. Being made of stucco it was thought to be worth very little. As the crane hoisted the 16 foot statue, to the horror of the monks watching, the straps did not hold and the rain soaked statue slipped into the mud below and started to crack. Concerned about further damage, they agreed to wait until morning to decide what to do next.
That evening a temple monk awoke from sleep, inspired to visit the Buddha image. When he gazed at the statue through lamp light, he saw a strange glint. He carefully started to chip away some of the brown stucco. And to his astonishment, he found gold under the plaster. After hours of work, he discovered that the statue was made entirely of pure gold.
Upon inspection they realized that the "clay" Buddha was over 700 years old and made of solid gold. It had been disguised under a layer of clay to camouflage it from Burmese invaders. The clay did it's job and the statue was overlooked. And when those who had hidden and protected it were all killed, its secret identity died with them. Two hundred years later an accident revealed it true identity. Its turned out to be the largest golden Buddha image in the world and is a most valued treasure of Thailand and of Buddhism.
helps us see our
"stucco" as well as our "Gold."
And we learn to appreciate
both for their place
in our lives.
