"When you plant lettuce," by Thich Nhat Hanh

Thich Nhat Hanh (1926 - 2022) was one of the most accessible, elegant, compelling translators of Buddhism to audiences in the Western world. Here’s a taste of his work — a bit of his prose laid out as a poem for your reading pleasure.

When you plant lettuce,
if it does not grow well,
you don't blame the lettuce. 

You look for reasons
it is not doing well.
It may need fertilizer,
or more water, or less sun.
You never blame the lettuce. 

Yet if we have problems
with our friends or family,
we blame the other person.

But if we know how
to take care of them,
they will grow well,
like the lettuce. Blaming
has no positive effect at all,
nor does trying to persuade
using reason and argument.
That is my experience.

No blame,
no reasoning,
no argument,
just understanding.

If you understand,
and you show that you understand,
you can love, and the situation will change.

+ Thich Nhat Hanh