Navy Bean Soup

A new wife, still getting used to cooking for her husband, prepared navy bean soup for dinner . She was very nervous to serve him this meal because she let it cook a bit too long. When her husband sat down to eat, she asked him how the soup tasted. He told her that it was the best meal and he really loved it. Wow! she thought to herself, he actually likes  his food overcooked. So from then on,  she let every meal cook a little  longer to get the taste that her husband desired. She changed her cooking habits to suit the needs of man she loved.

Twenty years later the couple sat down for dinner. Navy bean soup was on the menu for dinner. Before they sat down to eat the husband politely asked his wife “please try not to burn the beans this time, I don’t really like my beans overcooked”.

The moral of the story is to be direct and specific in your request of others. Ask for exactly what you want because  it will be exactly what you’ll get. Sometimes we are so afraid of hurting someone’s feelings that we forget about ourselves. The man in this story ate countless meals that he didn’t enjoy. If he was honest the first time, his wife would have prepared the beans differently. You teach others how to treat you.