Podcast: The Cow, the Buffalo, and the Storms

In this week’s podcast, we take a look at the differences in how the cow and the buffalo deal with the storms that come into their lives. If you haven’t heard the story of the buffalo before, then this is one you will want to hear. And of course, the show contains this week’s Signs of Hope story as well. So, listen to the audio podcast for the full version, or continue reading for a summary of today’s lesson.

Many times, we choose to run and hide from the storms in our lives. And that may be a good solution at times, but eventually, the storms will catch up to us. When they do, they are still going to hurt. They are inevitably going to be painful. So, the question becomes, is it better to face the storms as they happen? Or is it better to avoid them as long as we can?

Let’s discuss the story of the cow, the buffalo, and the storms. They say that the cow can sense the coming storm, and they will turn and run away from it. The buffalo can also sense the coming storm, but they will turn and run directly into the storm. At first glance, it appears that the cows are smarter than the buffalo. However, upon further study, scientists realized that the buffalo were not merely running into the storm. They were running into and through the storm.

The buffalo were making the time they spent in the storm shorter. They knew that if they stayed strong and pushed through the storm that the sunshine was waiting on the other side. Meanwhile, the cows were expending a lot of energy to avoid the storms. They were constantly running and trying to stay ahead of it. Yet, eventually, the storm would still catch up to the cows.

The question today is – who are you?

Are you like the buffalo? Can you stand strong and push through the storms in your life? Are you able to deal with the pain and difficulties that a storm brings? Or are you like the cow? Are you constantly trying to avoid the storms in your life, prolonging the depression and despair?

There’s an argument in favor of being more like the cow, but I prefer to be like the buffalo. The choice is yours.