The following transcription is taken from "A Cooking lesson" written by Stan Sakai on the adventures of Usagi Yojimbo books and begins shortly after a Kenjutsu lesson when a young student says:

 

- It´s no use Sensei. I´ll never learn the way of the sword. It´s just too hard.

 

- Adversities can strengthen one´s character, Usagi. It depends on how one deals with it.

 

- What do you mean?- asked the young student

 

- Boil three pots of water.

 

- How can hot water strengthen my character?

 

And so...

 

- Okay. They are boiling, now what?

 

- Cook this Daikon radish in the first pot. In the second pot boil this egg and scatter these dried leaves in the third.

 

- Daikon, an egg and dried leaves?! what kind of lesson is this?

 

Soon...

 

- They are done Sensei.

 

- Good. Take out the daikon and the egg. The boiling water represents life's hardships. The radish had gone in firm and strong, but the water has rendered it soft, weak and mushy. The egg, on the other hand, was once fluid in its shell; tough outwardly it looks the same, the interior has hardened. Adversity had changed those two.

 

- What about these crumbly leaves?

 

- The leaves have changed the boiling water into savory, aromatic tea, said the Sensei while sipping his tea.

 

- In the face of adversity, which one of these three are you?. Are you the Daikon, at first strong and rigid, but soon becoming soft and weak?. Perhaps the fragile egg? after laying in the boiling water, its heart became hardened and its spirit stiff? Or are you the leaves that did not suffer for the worse, but instead changed the very circumstances that would have brought pain? As the water become hotter, it released its fragance and flavor altering the situation around it.

 

- Any questions student?- asked seriously the Sensei.

 

- Just one Sensei...Mushy daikon, a hard boiled egg and some tea... Is that all we´re having for supper?

 

(The story, characters, script and names are Copyright of Stan Sakai and were used under permission)

Why impressed me? Some metaphors are empty, worthless, but some of them, as this one, are full of humor, seriousness and deep feelings about life, training, teaching and learning. So which one are you? Let´s think about it. We as martial arts, what are we seeing in our dojos? Who are our students? "Daikon radish, eggs or tea leaves"? What kind of "cooking lesson" are we teaching? Which reflection is in the mirror, the one we wish to see? The one who we would like to see? Are we able to understand the reflection that our mirrors brings with sincerity and humbleness?