[Sophie]

”Once upon a time a student monk went to his master and said: "Master, I can't live in this temple anymore. I want to leave this place and go to a peaceful and quiet monastery." The master monk asked: "Why? What's wrong with this temple? Tell me what happened?" So the student monk said: "You see, Master, everyone in this temple is toxic to me. There are so many monks who are just too much into politics and there are some who always talk negatively about me and others and there are some who spent their whole day just doing nothing but gossiping. I don't think that I can practice my spiritual life in this temple. Please let me go to a peaceful and quiet monastery where there are no toxic people around me."

The master monk listened attentively to the student and said: "Okay, Student. I will let you go, but before going, you have to do me a favor." The student replied: "Tell me, Master, what should I do for you?" The master monk took a spoon full of water and gave it to the student monk and told him that he must carry the spoon around the monastery and bring it back to him without spilling a single drop of water. The master monk added: "If you can do that, I will let you go to a peaceful monastery."

Eager to complete this task so he could go to a peaceful monastery, the student monk took the spoon and carried it around the monastery while being fully focused on not spilling a single drop. After a long while the student monk came back to the master with a happy face and said: "Master, I did it! I carried this spoon full of water around the monastery without spilling a drop from it. So now please let me go to a peaceful monastery." 

The master monk smiled and said: "Okay, my Student, as promised you are free to go. But before you go, just tell me one thing. While you were carrying the spoon full of water around the monastery, did you hear any of the monks talking about politics? Did you hear any of the monks gossiping about you and other people? Did you hear any of the monks talking negatively?" The student monk replied: "No, Master. I was fully focused on the spoon and I didn't have any time to listen to all those noises." 

Just then the master monk said: "See, my Student, if you are fully focused on your goal and on your purpose, you don't have time to listen to all those other negative noises around you. Remember, wherever you go in this world you will meet negative people around you. But if you are fully focused on your goal and on your larger purpose, all the other negative people and negative words that you hear are nothing but just noises. So don't focus on other people's behaviors, other people's words and other people's lives and get sidetracked from your true path and goal. Focus on your life and yourself, instead."”