The Simple Power Of Going For A Walk At Work

Once upon a time in China there was a farmer. One day the door to the barn was accidentally left open and the horse escaped. All of the other farmer’s neighbors, upon hearing of this loss, decried the horrible luck that the farmer had. The farmer simply replied with: “Perhaps.”

Many days later, the horse returned, followed by a whole herd of wild horses. The farmer and his son quickly rounded them all up and closed and latched the gate. The neighbors, upon hearing the commotion, stopped by to take a look. The loudly celebrated the change in the fortunes of the farmer. They exclaimed: “What good luck you have!”. The farmer quietly replied: “Perhaps.”

Days and weeks passed and soon the farmer’s son was out attempting to train one of the wild horses. The horse bucked wildly, throwing the son into the dirt and breaking his leg. Over the next few days the injury worsened as infection set in, with a high fever causing the son to ramble incoherently. Upon seeing the visits from the doctor the neighbors gathered and again asserted: “You have the worst luck!”. The farmer calmly replied: “Perhaps.”

Around that same time, elsewhere in China, a war broke out between two rival groups. As the war spread, a captain visited the village to forcefully enlist young men to fight. When the captain stopped at the house of the farmer he…