The Crooked and the Straight

There is a Japanese saying that I like:

「男心と秋の空。」

As it was explained to me by a friend who actually knows Japanese, it means roughly, "The mind of a man is like the autumn sky." Usually this is taken to mean that men are always changing their minds; they are indecisive. I prefer a more positive interpretation, however, namely that people are free to make different choices.

This appeals to my Zen-like sensibilities. One of the fundamental tenets of Zen Buddhism is the realization that everything -- life, curcumstances, luck -- is always changing, that nothing is permanent. If you realize that nothing is permanent, you know that you can always change your mind. Make a different decision. Choose another path.

What could be more comforting than that?

(To any women reading this who feels some smug need to affirm the more traditional translation, it is only fair that I point out a similar saying: 「女心と秋の空。」 Or, "A woman's heart is like the autumn sky." So there.)