“you can never tell when bad luck may not after all turn out to be good luck”

-Winston Churchill

such is the way, where todays good luck or great news turns itself on its head and we are cursed by what we had so recently praised as good, righteous. or the flipside happens, either way it is best not to count your blessings before it plays out. time will change the field. as this wise Chinese idiom spells out:

A long time ago, a poor Chinese farmer lost a horse, and all the neighbors came around and said, “well that’s too bad.” The farmer said, “maybe.” Shortly after, the horse returned bringing another horse with him, and all the neighbors came around and said, “well that’s good fortune,” to which the farmer replied, “maybe.” The next day, the farmer’s son was trying to tame the new horse and fell, breaking his leg, and all the neighbors came around and said, “well that’s too bad,” and the farmer replied, “maybe.” Shortly after, the emperor declared war on a neighboring nation and ordered all able-bodied men to come fight many died or were badly maimed, but the farmer’s son was unable to fight and spared due to his injury. And all the neighbors came around and said, “well that’s good fortune,” to which the farmer replied,“maybe.” And so the story goes.

When something bad happens people in China will say, 塞翁失馬, the old man loses his horse, to show and others that, sometimes things happen that in the start are bad, but might turn and become good.