The Stonecutteris one of my favorite Japanese folktales, and while the author and date of origin have been forgotten, the message can be applied to anyone at any time in any career.
Here’s the story in my own words:
Once upon a time, there was an unhappy stonecutter. Every morning was struggled to wake up. Slowly, they would roll out of bed, collect their tools, and trudge to work. With heavy steps, they walked through the city to the giant stone mountain at the edge of town, where they pounded against the rock until it broke free. Once chiseled out, the stonecutter would collect the pieces to sell in town, all the while dreaming of a life that wasn’t their own.
One morning, the stonecutter passed an enormous house that belonged to a wealthy merchant. The stonecutter began to imagine all the beautiful things that must be inside the merchant’s home, the parties, the distinguished guests, and the fancy foods in the cupboards. If only I could be a wealthy merchant, the stonecutter thought, then I wouldn’t have to cut stone all day.
Suddenly, the stonecutter felt a small earthquake…
POOF
To their great surprise, the stonecutter had become the merchant of their dreams. Their new home was more gorgeous than they imagined! The guests who arrived at their parties were fun, smart, and beautiful. And they enjoyed the best of foods.
Shortly after the transformation, the merchant heard gongs sounding in the streets. It was the high official of the city, and they were passing through on a sedan chair carried by attendants and escorted by a band of soldiers. No matter your wealth or status, everyone had to bow before the procession.
Walking out of their new home, the merchant thought, if only I could be the leader of this city, then I would never have to bow to anyone ever again!
The merchant felt the ground rumble…
POOF
The merchant suddenly became the high official, with their name embroidered on the sedan chair. What luck! The new high official ordered their servants and soldiers to carry them around the entire city once more. The official was feared by all the people in the land, and every person bowed before them. What power I have, thought the high official.
It was a hot day. On the second loop around the city, the high official became uncomfortable sitting in their chair, their sweaty body rubbing against the hot leather.
The high official looked at the sun and the sun shined back, sitting high in the sky, making the high official more hot, uncomfortable, and now, thirsty. The sun was indifferent to the existence of the high official, and yet, the sun had total control over the whole kingdom.
Oh, how I wish I could be the sun, the high official thought, then I could truly be powerful, for it has much more power than the highest position in the kingdom.
The chair began to shake and…
POOF
The high official became the sun, and the sun shone fiercely down on everyone, scorching the fields and burning the laborers. The sun smiled with its new power.
And then, out of nowhere, a giant rain cloud moved between the sun and the earth, blocking the light from shining on the fields and people.
What could be more powerful than me?The sun thought. A rain cloud!? If only I could be a rain cloud, then I could be more powerful than the sun!
The sun began to tremble and then…
POOF
The sun became the rain cloud.
The rain cloud got to work right away, blocking the sun by flooding the fields and villages. It rained so hard it flooded the merchant’s beautiful home and the high official’s palace. Everyone shouted at the rain cloud praying for it to stop—to show mercy. Entranced with power, the rain cloud thought, now I’ll really make it pour! But in that moment, the cloud was pushed aside and missed the kingdom completely.
What’s this?The rain cloud thought. Who could have power over a rain cloud!?
The wind blew harder, and the rain cloud moved farther up, up, and away.
If only I could be the wind,the rain cloud thought, and then I could truly be powerful.
The rain cloud began to shiver, and then…
POOF
The rain cloud became the wind.
The wind began pushing clouds, blocking the sun, and controlling the weather. It blew roofs off houses and uprooted trees. Everyone and everything feared the wind.
Until it pushed up against something that wouldn’t budge. No matter how forcefully the wind blew, the mountain stood its ground.
The stone is blocking me! The wind thought. If only I could be a stone mountain, then I could be more powerful than the wind.
Everything became silent, and then…
POOF
The wind became a giant stone mountain, and it stood strong for all to see.
Soon after the transformation, the stone mountain heard a familiar noise, the soft pitter-patter of clanging tools. The mountain recognized the sounds as the thumping of a hammer pounding a chisel into solid rock. The mountain began to feel something funny—an odd sensation of its mass changing shape. The mountain looked down to its very bottom and saw the figure of a stonecutter, chiseling pieces of rock and moving them onto a cart.
A stonecutter? The mountain thought to itself. The stonecutter has the power to cut the most powerful thing in the world. Why did I ever want to be anything else?
The Moral?
I’ll leave it up to you. There is something, however, about having much more in our lives than we realize. Instead of saying, I’ll be happier if... look at all the ways you can be happy in the position you are in now. At times, we are so focused on getting to the next step in our career, we miss the meaningful opportunities that are already waiting for us. There is a lot of power in a stonecutter, but sometimes you have to become a stone mountain to realize how important and powerful the stonecutter’s hammer and chisel are.
One way I remind myself of my inner stonecutter is with a gratitude journal. When I can (I try to every night), I write down a few things I’m grateful for that came up during the day. When I’m finished, I flip through my journal to remind myself of all the things I’ve been thankful for over the last few weeks. It reminds me of all things I have in my life supporting me so I don’t take them for granted.
Another way I remain mindful is a practice I’ve invited my family and friends to partake in: Before sharing a meal, we go around the table saying one thing each of us is thankful for.
Focusing on what I have in the present moment helps me plan my next step because I focus less on the desire for things like power or money, and more on making a difference with the tools I have available to me and I spend more of my energy on what I can do instead of wishing I was someone else.
More than luck,
<3
Originally published on sustainableevolution.com on 22 July 2022.