IF YOU GIVE UP WHEN IT’S WINTER,

IF YOU GIVE UP WHEN IT’S WINTER, YOU WILL MISS THE PROMISE OF YOUR SPRING

There was a man who had four sons. He wanted his son to learn not to judge things too quickly. So he sent them each on a quest, in turn, to go and look at a peer tree that was a great distance away. The first son went in the winter, the second in the spring, and the third in summer, and the youngest son in the fall.

When they had gone and come back, he called them together to describe what they had seen.

The first son said that the tree was ugly, bent, and twisted.

The second son said no it was covered with green buds and full of promise.

The third son disagreed; he said it was laden with blossoms and smelled so sweet and looked so beautiful, it was the most graceful thing has had ever seen.

The last son disagreed with them all; he said that it was ripe and drooping with fruit, full of life and fulfillment.

The man then explained to his sons that they were all right, because they had seen but only one season in the tree’s life. He told them that you cannot judge a tree, or a person, by only one season, and that the essence of who they are and the pleasure, joy, and love that come out from that life can only be measured at the end, when all the seasons are up.

If you give up when it’s winter, you will miss the promise of your spring, the beauty of your summer, fulfillment of your fall. Don’t let the pain of one season destroy the joy of all the rest. Don’t judge life by one difficult season. Persevere through the difficult patches and better times are sure to come some time or later.