Two Large Stones

Two large stones sat on the side of a hill. Grass and flowers grew there. “This side of the hill is nice,” said the first stone. “But I wonder what is on the other side of the hill?”

“We do not know. We never will,” said the second stone.

One day a bird flew down. “Bird, can you tell us what is on the other side of the hill?” asked the stones. The bird flew up into the sky. He flew high over the hill. He came back and said, “I can see towns and castles. I can see mountains and valleys. It is a wonderful sight.”

The first stone said, “All those things are on the other side of the hill.” “How sad,” said the second stone. “We cannot see them. We never will.” The two stones sat on the side of the hill. They felt sad for one hundred years.

One day a mouse walked by. “Mouse, can you tell us what is on the other side of the hill?” asked the stones. The mouse climbed up the hill. He put his nose over the top and looked down. He came back and said, “I can see earth and stones. I can see grass and flowers. It is a wonderful sight.”

The first stone said, “The bird told us a lie. That side of the hill looks jus the same as this side of the hill.” “Oh good!” said the second stone. “We feel happy now. We always will.”

~ From Mouse Soup by Arnold Lobel

This story — simple and profound on many levels – is from a lovely children’s book that was given to my daughter recently. It so perfectly reminds me of the power of perspective.

Often we “make up” reality based on limited information, and suffer unnecessarily as a result. The trick is to catch ourselves at it, and ask: Is it true? See if you can catch the stories you tell yourself.

Check out The Work of Byron Katie as one approach to examining your unconscious perspectives. She provides a straightforward structure for thinking through our assumptions about reality. Read more here: Jumping to Conclusions? Use the Work of Byron Katie