Three men named Alex, Bernard, and Wayne went on vacation in China to celebrate the New Year. They got lost while site seeing one afternoon, and came upon a barrel of vinegar. They decided to rest there.
Alex stuck his finger in the vinegar, pulled it out, and had a taste. “Yuck! It's sour.”
The taste reminded him of how life today seems out of step with the way things used to be. No one respects the old traditions anymore, he thinks, and the people in charge are running everything into the ground.
Next, Bernard had a taste. “Hrmph! It's bitter.”
It reminded him of how life is just one big disappointment after the next. He can't enjoy himself because everything always seems unfair, and no matter how good things get there are plenty more bad things going on as well.
Wayne had a taste. “Mmm. It's sweet!”
The vinegar reminded him of how everything in life turned out the way it was supposed to. Actually, it wasn't going to turn out any other way. To Wayne, the more you try too hard to make things go one way or the other, the more resistance you'll feel. Wayne isn't fatalistic about this. He's learned to relax and let things unfold as they do.
Alex and Bernard weren't in the mood for Wayne's bullshit. It was time to pack up and start moving again.
