Point of View
In the recent entry, Questions Never Posted, I mentioned a comment that Santhan had made, which was basically, “How do you know that the people you feel sorry for, because of poverty or whatever, aren’t feeling sorry for you?�
I really understand what he means.
I would like to make just a few personal observations:
I love to watch decorating shows on TV.
There is one show in particular I will mention right now. It’s called Designers’ Challenge. This is the structure it follows every show:
First you see a homeowner who has a room in his house that he is unhappy with. Often it’s the kitchen or master bedroom or bath, so you see the room in its present state,
Then three interior designers, one at a time, show what they would do with the room.
Then the homeowner has to choose one of the three interior designers.
Then the chosen designer gets to work, and you finally see the remodel.
Now I will tell you what often bothers me with this show.
First of all, the kitchen or whatever is usually a room that most of us would die for just the way it is to start with! and it hurts me to see it demolished.
The clincher, however, is when the show’s announcer says: “With ONLY $50,000 for the remodel, which designer will the homeowner choose?â€?
Where I live you can buy a perfectly good house for $50,000! I would consider $500.00 a lavish outlay. And I just don’t know people with “master bedrooms.� I just know people with bedrooms.
Okay, so you’ve got that picture. Now I will give you another one. In fact, I’ll paint a few more.
When I was in Europe for the first time many many years ago – I don’t remember now which country this was in – I stayed with a family who didn’t have a real stove. They had two burners on a counter and a little oven that plugged into the wall. From these two burners and little oven came the most delicious food you ever tasted. From that home, the greatest hospitality.
When I was in India many many years ago, I remember seeing a young man and woman walking down a busy street, pushing a wooden cart. I imagine they were married, and the cart and its contents were all they owned in the world. They pushed their cart down this dusty street. They talked and smiled at each other, and they were holding hands.
There is a book I read a few years ago that took place in India. I wish I remembered the name of the book. It was a powerhouse of a book. Well, there was an uncle and his nephew who were tailors. They walked to the big city in order to make their fortune. They never did make their fortune, but before they knew that, the nephew dreamed of marrying a young woman in his hometown whom he loved. He envisioned happily how they could start their married life. Excitedly he thought how they could start out by living on his aunt’s front porch. He felt so blessed.
I see what Santhan meant very well. Sometimes those who have little have a lot more. Whom do I admire? The people who have their house decorated or the man who would live happily on his aunt’s porch?
Admittedly, I don’t particularly want to live on someone’s porch, nor live out of a push cart, nor be without a real stove, but do I feel sorry for the people who had so little? How could I? I want to be like them in that they lead a simple life, and they know the great treasures they possess.
There is a lot to be said for a simple basic frill-free life.
What do you think?
Hey, can I bring a Ryder truck to the monastery?
Godwriting is a blog by Gloria Wendroff and is about Gloria's daily life as the Godwriter of the Heavenletters project that is having a profound effect on the lives of people around the world.
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