I came by this story the other day: Zen Story: Maybe. Since it’s very short, I’ll just quote it in full here:
There is a Taoist story of an old farmer who had worked his crops for many years. One day his horse ran away. Upon hearing the news, his neighbors came to visit. “Such bad luck,” they said sympathetically. “Maybe,” the farmer replied.
The next morning the horse returned, bringing with it three other wild horses. “How wonderful,” the neighbors exclaimed. “Maybe,” replied the old man.
The following day, his son tried to ride one of the untamed horses, was thrown, and broke his leg. The neighbors again came to offer their sympathy on his misfortune. “Maybe,” answered the farmer.
The day after, military officials came to the village to draft young men into the army. Seeing that the son’s leg was broken, they passed him by. The neighbors congratulated the farmer on how well things had turned out. “Maybe,” said the farmer.
Life is unpredictable. Losing something will at times lead to winning something greater, but just as often it will not. “When one door closes, another opens”, except in real life, sometimes there is no other door, and the loss is just that: a loss. I think that is the truest test of one’s Zen.