Silver Linings

You may have heard the old Chinese fable of the farmer and his horse. The horse runs away, and a neighbour comes over to console the farmer, telling him it was bad luck to have lost the horse. “Maybe,” replied the farmer. The next day the horse returned, bringing with it seven wild horses. The neighbour declared this to be good luck. “Maybe,” the farmer replied. Trying to break in one of the wild horses, the farmer’s son broke his leg. Bad luck, according to the neighbour. “Maybe,” said the farmer. The next day the Emperor’s Generals came to conscript men for the army, but the farmer’s son was rejected because of his broken leg. Good luck!

When I think of the twists and turns of this fable, I can’t help but be struck by the resemblance it bears to this marathon Championship season. Though Leeds stand on the precipice of promotion, nobody would argue that it hasn’t been a bumpy ride along the way.

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