Think positive! Live happy! Count blessings! Recycling aluminium cans
I met a lady today. She was neatly dressed in an excessively worn-out dress which had seen better days.She was on a bicycle which was very rusted. Slung across her handle bar was a red transparent plastic bag with aluminum cans. She collects them for a living.
It is an honest living. But I couldn’t help thinking that as a grandmother and nearing the age of seventy, she should be enjoying some of the fruits of life. It was darned hot and Mrs BB passed some time exchanging pleasantries with her. Her teeth was almost gone. She said that she prefers to have as many teeth extracted as possible whenever possible as to fill up cavities costs a lot of money and the waiting list for appointments at the government dentists is long.
But as I listened to her more and more I realized she was perhaps happier than many of us. Her father had left the bulk of his considerable fortune to his sons as is the custom in most families here in Sibu. She had survived without an inheritance and her health was still good. She had just bought the upper level of a house in Sibu’s China town. The flooding was not a problem to her bicycle and the sinking of her premises did not particularly concern her. She was grateful for what she had.
Her children were not living with her. Instead of complaining about that, she said it was a blessing to lead a simple life. Her husband she joked was getting pleasant in his old age and came home every day.
This is a happy woman. Sometimes we should not judge people by our own expectations. It is like what some one said, ” Think positive! Live happy! Count blessings! ” However very few of us do that. We tend to overemphasize the negative side. Is that healthy or is to have a positive outlook a form of escapism like rainbows, sunsets, music and movies? Is reality so out of vogue in today’s modern times we have to make everything seem politically correct? Everything nicely packaged with sugar and spice and everything nice? No unpleasant stuff exists in the open and we look for the silver lining all the time.
Food for thought my dear friends. Food for thought. 
Bengbeng | interesting characters
yeah..
living in simplicity is much better than living in a hectic and pressurized state.
Scientists said that if you live life simpler, you’ll live longer..haha
Very good post, very thoughtful and insightful. I mentioned a similiar story in my post titled ‘Dilemma of a Medical student’ only the story from my point of view. I guess the world is full of different types of people, some more lucky than the rest, but it’s how we overcome the difficult circumstances and continue living our lives that matters.
I have a lot of newspapers, magazines and cans…and I know I can sell them and get some money, but I choose to donate them to the kidney foundation. Money isn’t everything! Sometimes, when you do little things, little though they may be, that make u feel good inside, it is worth all the money in the world…and do believe that you will be blessed abundantly in return.
Escapism, my friend? Isn’t blogging a form of escapism too? Those that I have met said that they did not expect me to be what I am like in person! It’s good to escape time and time again…in a movie, in a song, in a quiet scenic place. It’s like what they say…”to get away from it all”,like some kind of therapy that may help us keep our sanity…but we should not forget that whatever it is, our feet are still on the ground. We have to go back to reality eventually…and life goes on. But those brief moments of self-indulgence is good for the mind and soul, a momentary relief from the cares and worries in the world of reality! Prayer helps too!
P.S.: This is a comment. Not a post, please. Thanks.
Thanks for the comment. You chose to donate to the kidney foundation which is a good thing. She needs it to have food on her dining table. She needs to eat and buy basic necessities. She needs it to survive in this world. Both ways the cans are recycled and good for the environment.
I was talking about myself, not the lady! Please get your perspective right! And are we talking about the environment here?
As for her, she deserves nothing but praise. She made a choice not to live with her children and to be independent. Her life may be harder and less comfortable but what matters most is she is happy and contented!
In life, we make a lot of choices - our job, where we want to settle down and who with, whether to have kids or not and how many and so on and so forth…or we have some imposed upon us. Some may turn out NOT the way we would like them to be. Either we work towards changing things for the better or we learn to live with them, if they are beyond our control. Moaning and groaning, grumbling and complaining will not help one bit!! In fact, all those negative vibes you are sending out will bring even more negative repercussions, affecting not only u BUT also everyone else around you!! Has it ever occured to you that because you are unhappy, those around you will be unhappy? too And that will bring more negative vibes and things will only get worse…not better!