Progress Takes Time

A rich man, fond of felines, asked a famous Zen ink painter to draw him a cat. The master agreed and asked the man to come back in three months.

When the man returned, he was put off again and again, until a year had passed.

Finally, at the man’s request, the master drew out a brush, and, with grace and ease, in a single fluid motion, drew a picture of a cat – the most marvelous image the man had ever seen.

He was astonished; then he grew angry. “That drawing took you only thirty seconds! Why did you make me wait a year?” he demanded.                                                  

Without a word, the master opened up a cabinet, and out fell thousands of drawings of cats.

Excellence is a function of practice and time. Don’t rush.

Those of us who are always pushing hard, running up the mountain, may reach the top first only to realize we forgot to enjoy the climb.

Progress takes time. Those who make it look easy have worked hard over time.