Monasteries of the Heart

A group of frogs were traveling through the woods, and two of them fell into a deep pit. When the frogs that had escaped the pit saw how deep it was, they told the two trapped frogs that they were as good as dead. The two frogs ignored the comments and tried to jump up out of the pit with all their might. The other frogs kept telling them to stop, that they were as good as dead. Finally, one of the frogs took heed to what the other frogs were saying and gave up. He fell down and died. The other frog continued to jump as hard as he could. Once again, the crowd of frogs yelled at him to stop the pain and just die. But he jumped even harder and finally made it out. When he got out, the other frogs said, “Didn’t you hear us? Why did you keep trying?” The frog explained, “I’m deaf. I thought you were cheering for me-- telling me not to give up and encouraging me to jump higher.”

Discuss: Do you have any frog stories to share? An instance when words of encouragement led you to do more than you thought possible? An instance when criticism crippled you? Have your words ever helped another leap higher? Have they ever discouraged another?