Ernest Cadorin
The Silver Spool
2020/08/29Fast-Forwarding Through Life’s Difficulties
We usually look to Zen stories for guidance in the philosophy of karate-do, but there is a wonderful French folktale that's equal to the task. I first heard it recounted many summers ago during one of our outdoor training sessions. I remember sitting under a large tree as our sensei told us the story, and I remember him saying that although this is technically not a Zen story, it should be!
The story is about a young boy named Pierre. At seven years old, Pierre was not fond of school, and each day as he sat in the classroom, he looked forward to being back home playing with his friend, Annette. He and Annette were best friends, and everyone expected that someday they would marry each other.
One day, on his way home from school, Pierre’s fairy godmother appeared to him. She presented him with a gift – a spool of silver thread – and explained to him that the thread represented his life. If he ever wanted to speed up a dull moment, he could pull on the thread and unravel some of the spool. The fairy godmother cautioned him to use it wisely, and after she disappeared, Pierre put the spool of thread into his pocket and continued home.
The next day, Pierre was back in school. He was feeling especially bored in math class, so he took the spool out of his pocket and pulled ever so slightly on the thread. The next thing he knew, the class was over! From Pierre’s point of view, the whole math lesson had happened in a mere instant. Excited about his new gift, he put the spool back in his pocket and kept it a secret.
The following day was also a school day, and Pierre was feeling as bored as ever. When nobody was watching, he took the spool out once again and gave the thread another short pull. It was just the right amount, Pierre thought, because a moment later, school was over and he was home playing with Annette.
Young Pierre quickly got into the habit of using the spool whenever he was bored. Thanks to his fairy godmother’s gift, he no longer had to suffer through long days at school or through any other dull moment in his life. Nevertheless, happy as he was, he longed for the future when he and Annette would be married. Eventually his patience gave way, and with one long pull of the silver thread, Pierre instantly transported himself to adulthood. He and Annette were happily married, and Pierre was content.
As an adult, Pierre continued to use the silver spool to fast-forward through life’s difficulties. Before long, however, he was faced with a terrible dilemma. His mother had become seriously ill, and if he used the spool to skip past that unpleasant period, she would be gone in an instant. Unaccustomed to dealing with hardship, Pierre solved his problem as he had solved all of his other problems: he gave the silver thread another tug.
Pierre was now an old man. He was saddened by the thought of how quickly life had passed him by, and he regretted not having allowed himself to experience it more fully. Then, one day, his fairy godmother reappeared. This time, instead of offering him a gift, she offered to grant him a wish. Pierre immediately asked her to return him to the day of their first encounter, and he begged her not to present him with the silver spool. Instantly, his wish was granted.
Once again a seven-year-old boy, Pierre had never been happier. He found himself looking forward to each school day and everything it would bring. He learned to appreciate all the moments in his life, pleasant or otherwise. Every moment is valuable and deserves to be experienced, he thought. Once it has passed, it’s gone forever.