A Taoist drinks the water.

The eternal question, is the glass half full or half empty?

Read this Tao poem by Richard Seymour.
(http://www.taoism.net/supplement/taopoems.htm)

It poetically summarises his understanding of Tao philosophy on the matter.


Half Empty or Half Full?

Would an optimist say a glass is half full,
Where a pessimist would say it is half empty?
A glass may be made of anything,
But its function lies in its emptiness.
That emptiness may be filled with whatever we choose.
The pessimist sees future potential;
The optimist sees only what is gone.
While others grow thirsty as they debate this point,
A Taoist drinks the water,
And is refreshed.


This is thought provoking.
It flipped the head on conventional thinking.
We are so focused to avoid being called a pessimist that when asked, we always say that the glass is half full, never half empty.

But in acknowledging that the glass is half empty, we acknowledge its potential.
The emptiness has potential that we can fill and influence the final content.

For example, if we have half a glass of coconut water, we have space to add a bit of milk and vanilla ice-cream and turn our coconut water to coconut shake. Yum...!
If we have half a glass of teh 'O', we can add lychee and turn our teh 'O' to teh 'O' laici; for extra "umph", add ice for teh 'O' ais laici. Double Yum...!

On the grander scheme of things, if there is anything missing from your life, people will say focus on what you have and count your blessing.
But this breeds contentment.
And contentment is poison that can sap the the passion, the drive, the life out of you.

That "emptiness" in your life is potential yet to be realised.
Hence, count your blessing, but do not stop counting at the half way mark.
The other half is life not yet lived, dreams not yet realised.

Or, be like Tao, "drink the water" and be "refreshed" as the last line say.
Enjoy the presence.


PS: As an engineer, I would say that the glass is too big, an overdesign.
You have overpaid for your glass. Bad investment.
It would take longer to recover back your capital.
But that is just the engineer in me.