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1-Page Summary of The Coffee Bean
Overview
Every morning, millions of people around the world wake up and have a cup of coffee. It’s a common ritual that they share despite their many differences.
Coffee is a stimulant that helps people wake up and get going in the morning. It has a pleasant smell and taste, which makes it easier to drink coffee. The brain receives more oxygen when we drink coffee, making us feel more awake and alert.
The story of the coffee bean is a fable that teaches us how to overcome our challenges and stay positive. It tells us about what we can do when we feel hopeless. We should use this story as a metaphor to help people understand their own problems, so they can find solutions for themselves.
Big Idea #1: Life can be tough.
The main character in our story is a high school senior named Abraham. He’s an average American teenager who plays football, and his dream is to play football in college.
Abe was a good athlete, but he also liked the academic side of school. He especially liked science class because his favorite teacher taught that subject.
Abe seemed to have everything going for him. He was an intelligent student, well liked by his peers and teachers alike. One day though, he came into school in a foul mood that Mr. Jackson noticed. Abe didn’t want to talk about it, but Mr. Jackson insisted on finding out what was wrong with Abe because he wanted him to be happy at school and get the best education possible from there on out.
After the private conversation, Abe felt a lot better and was able to share his feelings with Mr. Jackson. He had been feeling stressed at home because of his parents’ fighting as well as an upcoming exam in school.
The game was a pressure point for the player. Not only would his team be one step closer to winning the championship, but there were also college scouts in attendance who wanted to see him play well. And then on top of all that, he felt other people’s expectations for him as a star football player. If he played well, it made people happy and if he didn’t play well, they were disappointed in him.
Have you ever felt like you were under too much pressure from too many sides? You might have experienced that in a big game, such as an important presentation or interview. Have you ever been in the same situation as Abe—like when you’re trying to be a good parent or manager while dealing with family troubles and other issues?
How can we overcome the challenges of these difficult times? Mr. Jackson has some surprising advice for Abe and us all.
Big Idea #2: When life gets tough, we can become weak.
After listening to Abe’s problems, Mr. Jackson simply nodded and said he understood how Abe felt. He didn’t offer any advice or guidance though; instead, he gave him a homework assignment: boil a carrot in water and observe it for the next day.
Abe was assigned to observe the effects of boiling water on a carrot. He found that after ten minutes in the boiling water, the carrot got soft and lost its firmness. Mr. Jackson revealed that this experiment was meant to teach Abe an important lesson about life: when we’re put into difficult situations, our environment can make us lose our strength and give up easily. If we let ourselves be surrounded by negative emotions like fear or hopelessness, then we’ll become weak just like the boiled carrot did.
Eventually, we may become so tired of struggling that we want to give up. For example, you might consider quitting a job that’s difficult or escaping from an unhappy relationship. You might feel dispirited and lose interest in things you used to enjoy. For instance, if you have financial problems or career setbacks, your dejection could affect your relationship with your spouse and children; for example, you could stop spending time with them.
