Cup of Coffee Anyone?

I recently was sent the following story from my sister in law that I just had to pass on. Perhaps you are like I am and just love a good cup of coffee. But I never thought about being a cup of coffee until I read this. Check it out...
A carrot, an egg, and a cup of coffee. A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how hard things were for her. She was tired of fighting and struggling and she wanted to give up.
Her mother took her to the kitchen and heated up 3 pots of water. When the pots came to boil, she first placed carrots into the first pot. In the second pot she placed eggs and in the third she placed ground coffee beans. She left them sit and boil without saying a word.
20 minutes later, the mother placed the carrots, the eggs and the coffee in separate bowls. She then asked her daughter to tell her what she saw. "Carrots, eggs, and coffee" she said. The mother asked her to feel the carrots. She did so and noticed they were soft. Then she took an egg and broke it and peeled the shell off of the hardboiled egg. Finally, the mother asked her to take a sip of coffee. She enjoyed the fine aroma and took a healthy sip of the fresh brewed coffee. The daughter then asked, "What does all this mean?"
Her mother explained that all 3 objects faced the same adversity-boiling water. But each reacted differently. The carrot went in strong, hard, and unrelenting. But after being in the hot water, it eventually softened and became mushy and weak. The egg went in fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected the liquid inside, but after sitting in the hot water, its inside became hardened.
The ground coffee beans were unique however. After they were in the hot water for awhile, they actually changed the water. "Which are you?" asked the daughter. "When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg, or a coffee?"
How about you? Are you more like the carrot that seems to be strong, but under adversity you soften up and lose strength and wilt away?
Or are you more like the egg that hardens with the changes of heat. Does your shell look the same but on the inside you have a bitter and tough spirit?
Or are you like the coffee bean? When the water gets hot, you actually change the water-releasing a great fragrance, changing the color and taste of the very thing that brought the heat.
Perhaps today you know someone that you can share this with to encourage them. Who do you know that has given up hope? Perhaps even you have? May I suggest taking some time and having a cup of coffee with them or better yet be a cup of coffee for someone.