Can You Eat Bitter?

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I was listening to an author interview today as I drove.

How's that for the height of geekdom?

The guy had written a book about his life - he dropped out of Princeton in an effort to study hard to become a Buddhist Monk.

I'm sure his parents were thrilled with that decision.

He went to China for two and a half years, and went through the trials and tribulations involved.

Not that any of that caught my attention, but he did speak of an interesting concept.

Can You Eat Bitter? is the concept and it is all about enduring the suffering of life.

The study was all about rising above the bitter, and handling disappointment, and as I drove I wondered about the man becoming one with his mind in an effort to eat the bitter.

Can you eat bitter?

The more I thought about it, the more I figured out that there isn't much of an option there - now is there?

You have to eat the bitter that comes with the sweet. Sometimes it seems that there isn't enough sweet to allow you to move forward, but I suppose that for awhile, at least, you consume enough of the bitter to sustain, and then you wait.

And wait, and wait, and wait.

But you have to eat the bitter.

And hope the sweet comes around.

Comments

deafjeff said…
Boy am I glad my life is a cupcake. A cupcake with lots of frosting and sprinkles.
12 February, 2010
John said…
i find ouzo kind of bitter, but your brother made me drink it anyway
12 February, 2010
Cliff Fazzolari said…
Geez, Pops and Johnny when I saw that you posted comments I was sure that there'd be something about how 'much' I've been forced to consume - you guys are slipping - there were plenty of jokes there for the taking.
13 February, 2010
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