What if things go well?

On prospecting for good things

Recently, a friend was telling me about a setback, and to offer comfort I said how disappointing and in response they said maybe.

It was a direct reference to the Taoist parable often referred to as the Farmer and his Horse, with recent Western versions often deriving from this Alan Watts retelling:

“Once upon a time there was a Chinese farmer whose horse ran away. That evening, all of his neighbours came around to commiserate. They said, “We are so sorry to hear your horse has run away. This is most unfortunate.” The farmer said, “Maybe.” The next day the horse came back bringing seven wild horses with it, and in the evening everybody came back and said, “Oh, isn’t that lucky. What a great turn of events. You now have eight horses!” The farmer again said, “Maybe.”

The following day his son tried to break one of the horses, and while riding it, he was thrown and broke his leg. The neighbours then said, “Oh dear, that’s too bad,” and the farmer responded, “Maybe.” The next day the conscri…