The Ferns and Bamboo Story: my perspective.

I am sitting my room, idling again. Looks like I am back again in this cave, finally. This is where I like to ponder about life's issues, with my favourite playlist playing.

Away from the heaps of homework and readings during the academic semesters, life's suddenly tranquil and slow-moving, with a hint of laziness. Aimless it may seem, but I guess I can afford that. I need a break. The thought of going back to another round of paper-chasing's unthinkable now.

I was told of a story lately, about a man who was probably in the darkest hour of his life. Soaking in his despair, he contemplated to end his life. But I guess fate found him to be in a forest bursting with vegetative life. Striving on the forest floor were ferns, with bamboo sparsely distributed among them. Then, a Voice questioned that man,

" What is the difference between the bamboo and the ferns?"

As if the question was rhetorical, the voice answered,

"The ferns are short, but grow and reproduce rapidly, spreading across the forest floor like wildfire. The bamboo tress are tall and majestic, soaring up the sky towards the warmth of the sunlight. But tall as it may seem, it's roots runs deep into the ground. It takes a long time for its roots to grow far and deep into the soil, before it is ready to grow upwards into the sky."

I find this story very analogous to our lives. Very often, especially during transitional stages of life, we find ourselves trapped in the valleys of life. Or we find our lives on a plateau, wondering when we can scale greater heights. I guess these are the times when when our 'roots' are growing deeper into the ground to prepare us for the growth that will soon come - if we do not lose hope.