The World Reflects Your Attitude

What Kind of Reflection Are You Seeing?

I have to admit that I am the type of personality who has to work really hard with both hands and no coffee breaks to be depressed for even an hour, and I usually find that it's too much work so I don't do it.  I'm the sort who relates to Will Ferrell's character in the movie 'Elf'.  Okay, so I've totally ruined any credibility I may have had with you.    Too bad.   Here is a wonderful Japanese folktale that addresses how our attitude can influence how the world relates back to us. 

The House of 1000 Mirrors

Long ago in a small, far away village, there was a place known as the House of 1000 Mirrors. A small, happy little dog learned of this place and decided to visit. When he arrived, he bounced happily up the stairs to the doorway of the house. He looked through the doorway with his ears lifted high and his tail wagging as fast as it could. To his great surprise, he found himself staring at 1000 other happy little dogs with their tails wagging just as fast as his. He smiled a great smile, and was answered with 1000 great smiles just as warm and friendly. As he left the house, he thought to himself, "This is a wonderful place. I will come back and visit it often."

In this same village, another little dog, who was not quite as happy as the first one, decided to visit the house. He slowly climbed the stairs and hung his head low as he looked into the door. When he saw the 1000 unfriendly looking dogs staring back at him, he growled at them and was horrified to see 1000 little dogs growling back at him. As he left, he thought to himself, "That is a horrible place, and I will never go back there again."

All the faces in the world are mirrors. What kind of reflections do you see in the faces of the people you meet?

Thanks to Bob Proctor for introducing us to this great little tale. Or is that tail?  And just in case you wonder which dog is in the picture, it is the happy dog, and his name was Spanky.

The Secret Says to Ask