Doom and gloom! Woe and despair! It wasn’t so long ago that the Prophets of Negativity were telling us that gas prices were going to continue to rise, and that by the end of the year they would have reached heights that none of us wanted to even think about. From where I sit, it looks as though they are falling. Funny thing that – could the Gloom Merchants have been   *** shock horror *** wrong?

 

I am reminded of an ancient Chinese tale about an old peasant farmer, his son and his horse. He wasn’t a wealthy man. He counted his son and his horse as his only riches. One day the horse jumped the fence and disappeared. “O woe and despair” commiserated the neighbours. “Maybe so, and maybe not,” replied the old man.

 

A few days later the horse returned, accompanied by another horse. The farmer penned them both. The neighbours all flocked around saying “Wonderful! Marvelous!” but the old man replied, “Maybe so, and maybe not.”

 

The farmer’s son decided to ride the new horse, to get it used to the saddle. The horse bucked him off and the young man broke his leg. “O woe and despair” commiserated the neighbours once again. “Maybe so, and maybe not,” replied the old man.

 

Not long afterwards the local warlord visited the town, rounding up all the young men to fight in his latest battle against a neighboring war lord. The old man’s son escaped conscription because he was laid up with his broken leg. The neighbours all flocked around saying “Wonderful! Marvelous!” but the old man replied, “Maybe so, and maybe not….”

 

The next time you hear the Prophets of Negativity wailing and beating their chests (which will probably be today!) remember the old man, and remember that the Wheel is ever turning…..