Chinese fortune cookies are one of the most interesting and unique rituals in our dining culture. Contrary to popular belief there are claims it even began as an American tradition. In my experience most fortunes try to tell you something about yourself rather than what the future will bring, but occasionally you get one that is inspiring, hilarious, or even insightful (all in fun of course). I got one today at lunch and I have no freaking clue what it means:
Too much sacrifice can kill genuine feelings.
??? Any way I try to interpret that seems ridiculous.
Comments
4 responses to “Cryptic Fortune”
Pleasing others at your own expense can eventually turn any goodwill you might feel into resentment. Makes sense to me.
I thought of that interpretation, but it still seems wrong. So someone who devotes all their time to helping the homeless may one day hate the homeless? A mother completely devoted to her children could one day resent them? A soldier fighting for his country may give up his loyalty? They sound reasonable except for one thing – They all rely on an ungrateful reaction from who the sacrifice is being offered to. Sure the mother may resent her adult children who mistreat her, but that has almost nothing to do with the sacrifice she made. The “genuine feelings” would be killed regardless if she made the sacrifice or not. The homeless shelter volunteer may get mugged or worse, but what does that have to do with the sacrifices she made? The fortune says this resentment comes from the sacrifice itself and I think that’s wrong.
Giving what you can afford to give away isn’t sacrifice, it’s charity. It’s when you give even though it hurts you that it becomes sacrifice.
“Giving what you can afford to give away isn’t sacrifice, it’s charity. It’s when you give even though it hurts you that it becomes sacrifice.”
That’s a good definition. If sacrifice hurts you, “too much sacrifice” must do even more damage to you and according to the fortune it causes so much damage it can destroy your original good intentions (I think we can assume the “genuine feelings” killed are linked to the sacrifice you’re making).