From time to time we face smaller or bigger obstacles in our life. All people need to deal with challenges and failures on their way, and their attitude towards those challenges plays the most important part. The person with positive attitude towards obstacles gradually becomes stronger and more successful. And in contrary, the person with negative attitude becomes more and more depressed, weak and unhappy. The secret is our attitude towards obstacles – do you accept it like a lesson from life and try to learn something from it, or do you just blame everyone around and feel anger?

Story 1:

One day a small gap appeared in the cocoon, through which the butterfly had to appear. A boy, who accidentally passed by, stopped and watched how the butterfly was trying to get out of the cocoon. It took a lot of time, the butterfly was trying very hard, and the gap was as little as before. It seemed that the power would leave the butterfly soon.
The boy decided to help the butterfly. He took a penknife and cut the cocoon. The butterfly immediately got out, but its body was weak and feeble, and the wings were barely moving.
The boy continued to watch the butterfly, thinking that now its wings would spread and its would fly. However, that did not happen.
The rest of its life the butterfly had to drag its weak body and wings that weren’t spread. It was unable to fly, because the boy did not realize that an effort to enter through the narrow gap of the cocoon was necessary for the butterfly, so that the life-giving fluid would move from the body to the butterfly’s wings and that the butterfly could fly. Life forced the butterfly to leave its shell hardly, so that it would become stronger and would be able to grow and develop.
If we were allowed to live without meeting difficulties, we would not be viable. Life gives us challenges to make us stronger.

Story 2:

One day a dull and exhausted by the illnesses and burdens of life peasant came to the wise man. He sat in front of the wise man, who gave him a heartfelt and warm smile. The peasant breathed out heavily letting out a wave of mourning. He began complaining about his life, that he has a hard burden that he doesn’t see a bright daylight at all, it’s like one problem falls on his head or the other – they have twisted him between the grindstones so much that he can’t even breathe in some fresh air. Later, he began blaming all of his relatives, who, in his opinion, were guilty for his misfortunes, whether the circumstances didn’t turn out right for him, or something else.

The wise man listened to him in silence, and when the peasant once again contritely inquired the wise man, why is it so unfair, what should he do and how to find peace, the wise man got up from his seat and invited the peasant to follow him.

They came out of the hut and went to a lakeside, which was not far away and where from time to time flying fishes were jumping, trotting fast above the surface, catching food.

The wise man led the peasant to the lakeside and said to him:

“Do you see the smoothness of the lake? The depths are full with life. There are fishes that always stay in water, and if suddenly the lake got polluted, they couldn’t see further their own nose, they would hardly recognize where the source of the pollution was, and they would keep swimming in circles. And there are also fishes that got wings and they can rise above the water of the lake, looking at it from the heights of their flight. So this is my advice: instead of complaining about your life, come to this lakeside from time to time, watch the flying fishes and try to understand what I wanted to say to you.”

Source: Short Inspirational Stories About Overcoming Challenges And Obstacles