Messy Nests

This is a wonderful Russian fable quoted in Kegan & Lahey's book "How the way we talk can CHANGE the way we work: 7 languages for transformation" (I highly recommend it).

One day a woodsman set out to the forest to chop wood. As he walked across the icy expanse, he spied a little bird freezing to death on the frozen tundra. He took pity on it, picked it up and held it close as he made his way to the forest. The little bird drew warmth from his body and began to come back to life. But when the woodman reached the forest, he had a problem. He needed both arms to cut down the trees and both arms to carry the wood home. He could not longer keep the bird, but he did not want to reconsign it to the icy end from which he had just saved it. He was not sure what to do. Then he noticed in the distance that a herd of cattle must have just passed by because they left their brown, round calling cards dotting the horizon. The woodsman thought the solution to his problem might be found in those cowpies, still fresh and steaming in the artic air. He walked over and selected the biggest, steamiest cowpie he could find and nestled the bird into it. He went on his business, chopped his wood and went home. The little bird hunkered down in his new home - this rich, fertile, fragrant, organic environment. He felt so good about it that he began to sing so well and so loud that a lone wolf not far away, followed the sound to its source and ate the little bird for lunch. The moral of the story is:

1. Whoever got you into this big stinking mess like the one you have is not necessarily your enemy.
2. Whoever gets you out of the mess may not be your friend.
3. When you are up to your neck in it, don't sing!