An aging Hindu master grew tired of his apprentice complaining, and so, one morning, sent him for some salt. When the apprentice returned, the master instructed the unhappy young man to put a handful of salt in a glass of water, and then to drink it.
“How does it taste?” the master asked.
“Bitter,” spit the apprentice.
The master chuckled and then asked the young man to take the same handful of salt and put it in the lake. The two walked in silence to the nearby lake, and once the apprentice swirled his handful of salt in the water, the old man said, “Now drink from the lake.”
As the water dripped down the young man’s chin, the master asked, “How does it taste?”
“Fresh,” remarked the apprentice.
“Do you taste the salt?” asked the master.
“No,” said the young man.
At this, the master sat beside this serious young man who so reminded him of himself and took his hands, offering:
“The pain of life is pure salt; no more, no less. The amount of pain in life remains the same, exactly the same. But the amount of bitterness we taste depends on the container we put the pain in. So when you are in pain, the only thing you can do is to enlarge your sense of things… Stop being a glass. Become a lake.”
unknown author
This is a beautiful reminder that we all carry with us, a handful of salt… if we wish to see the good we must dilute the bad.
Last year on Christmas morning, I went around the house turning on all the twinkling lights, lit some candles and put on the Christmas music. I love Christmas and I couldn’t wait for my children to wake up; they may be Santa’s little helpers, but the magic of Christmas is something we all hold dear to our hearts and share with each other, even if it’s only for the benefit of another. I snapped this picture of my peaceful Christmas morning and posted it on facebook along with joyous Christmas wishes for all. 
Come and Sit for a Spell 