The father of a very wealthy family took his son on a trip to the country with the express purpose of showing him how poor people live.
They spent a couple of days and nights on the farm of what would be considered a very poor family.
On their return from their trip, the father asked his son, "How was the trip?"
"It was great, Dad."
"Did you see how poor people live? the father asked."
"Oh yeah, said the son."
"So, tell me, what you learned from the trip?" asked the father.
The son answered:
"I saw that we have one dog and they had four. We have a pool that reaches to the middle of our garden and they have a creek that has no end...we have imported lanterns in our garden and they have the stars at night. Our patio reaches to the front yard and they have the whole horizon. We have a small piece of land to live on and they have fields that go beyond. We have servants who serve us, but they serve others. We buy our food, but they grow theirs. We have walls around our property to protect us; they have friends to protect them."
The boy's father was speechles, Then his son added, "Thanks Dad for showing me how poor we are."
We should be more focused on our surpluses rather than our deficits.
With the materialistc world that we live in, we tend to look at others as less fortunate when they are content. With all of the glidder and gold displayed on the idiot boxes we call televisions, we desire something that will be outdated a day later. The things that remain constants are always neglected. We need to step back once in a while and admire what we have and where we came from!
ReplyDeleteI have always been a simple kind of girl. I grew up with no running water or electricity. I have lived out of my car. I have gone hungry on more than one occasion. But I have learned how to truly enjoy the simple things in life. It is my son's smile that is my most prized possession. When you focus on what you do have and what will last through time, you soon realize that it doesn't come with a price tag.
ReplyDeleteGood to know Satch. Like you, I started out in life below the average accumulation of material things. This in effect has been a huge benefit in sculpting me to be a well rounded man.
ReplyDeleteI don't regret ONE iota of journey thus far.