Thor's Day: A fable about perspective

The black dot

By Anonymous

Edited by Morris Dean

[Submitted by a correspondent who could not identify the author. It’s not well written, but they say it’s the thought that counts. And Thor’s taking the day off again.]

A professor entered his classroom and asked his students to spend a few minutes preparing for a surprise exam. Surprise exams weren’t unusual, but the students nevertheless waited anxiously for this one to begin.
    The professor handed out a copy of the exam to each student, placing it face down, as usual. Once he had them all distributed, he asked the students to turn them over.
    To each student’s surprise, there were no questions on the sheet of paper – just a black dot in the center.
    After observing the students’ faces for a few moments, the professor told them, “I want you to write about what you see there. You have fifteen minutes.”
    None of the students started writing immediately, and most of them sat silently for at least a minute. But eventually all began writing and wrote at some length.

At the end of the fifteen minutes, the professor collected the exams and started reading the answers aloud to everyone.
    Each student, without exception, had described the black dot’s position on the page.
    After listening to all the answers, the students were silent, expectantly waiting for the professor to comment.
    "I’m not going to grade you on this," he said,

I just wanted to give you something to think about. No one wrote about the white part of the paper. Everyone focused on the black dot.
    You know, the same thing happens in our lives. We have a white piece of paper to observe and enjoy, but we always focus on the dark spots.
    Our life is a gift, and we always have reasons to celebrate – nature renewing itself everyday, our friends around us, jobs that provide for our livelihood, the miracles we witness everyday.
    But we insist on focusing on the dark spots – the illnesses that bother us, our lack of money, a complicated relationship with a family member, a disappointment with a friend.
    The dark spots are very small when compared with everything we have in our lives, but they’re the focuses of our attention.
    Take your eyes away from the black dots in your life. Enjoy each one of your blessings, each moment that life gives you. Be happy and live a life filled with love.

Copyright © 2015 by Morris Dean