Having the power … of Acceptance

Aikido practitioner and dispute resolution author, Tom Crum, tells this charming story of the power of acceptance in his book, “The Magic of Conflict“:

My wife and I once had our early morning mediations punctuated daily by the sound of an automobile horn announcing to our neighbour that his ride to work had arrived.  I was increasingly irritated by this and one day said to my wife, “if I had powers, I’d give that guy four flat tires.”

“That,” said my wife, “is why you don’t have powers.

Her remark moved me to serious contemplation, and a few day s later I announced, “If I had powers, all I’d really do is burst his horn.”

“That’s a bit better,” she said.

Further serious contemplation.  One morning I declared, “I’ve got it! If I had powers, I’d see that his horn didn’t work in this neighbourhood.”

“That’s a bit better yet,” she said.

I was now quite puzzled, because I thought I had finally discovered the “right action.”

At last I realized, “if I had powers, I wouldn’t be distracted by that horn.”

“Yes,” said my wife.