Another year gone by? Thinking of how old you are? Counting the things you should have done? Well, you are not the one singled out from a million. You are one among the million. How do I know? I am too.
Last weekend we went Christmas shopping. The mall was bustling with hundreds of holiday shoppers. Gifts were bought, people remembered and the sales were good. But…there is always a but. Who does the gift-wrapping? The stores of course! The only question is why pay more for the wrap than the gift itself? How do I give the perfect gift without spending too much? Vola! The mall had an answer. Down in the centre 3 young girls and a couple of elderly ladies provided the ‘gift-wrapping’ service from their booth. We paid $2 per gift-wrap. The girls were working hard from morning on their day off from school, finding something to giggle about every minute. Their faces were bright and happy. At the end of it, we pulled the money out to pay, pleased with their service. It was then they pointed to the donation box sitting on the table. All the money from their service was going to old-age charity. I was suddenly jolted from my shopper’s excitement! What is it that as an adult I have to spend something to find happiness whereas as a child you find happiness at what you do? De jâ vu?
It is not that we can’t be the same way. It’s just that the way was forgotten somewhere when you were ‘growing up’, competing, surviving and trying to ‘make it’. It won’t be the last time that we will be reminded that being an adult is a lot complicated than it should be. Yes, we cannot afford to be naïve. We can’t let someone take advantage of us. We have to be cautious and learn whom to trust. In all this, don’t we have some room for innocence and curiosity that we can nurture in a corner of our heart and remember that we have crossed the age of innocence and we can afford to be brave and be leaders of our souls into doing good that inspires others, the way the young girls inspired me? Once, I was young too as were you. I used be helpful and reach out to those who needed me. Somewhere down the line things changed. I started helping people who, I needed. I look back and see that I am not as happy as I used to be then. It must be something to do with the magic of making another person happy-the one who really needs it. In the end, being an idealist is not all that bad. This year think new. Conjure up something. Wishing you all a perfect ‘09!
Last weekend we went Christmas shopping. The mall was bustling with hundreds of holiday shoppers. Gifts were bought, people remembered and the sales were good. But…there is always a but. Who does the gift-wrapping? The stores of course! The only question is why pay more for the wrap than the gift itself? How do I give the perfect gift without spending too much? Vola! The mall had an answer. Down in the centre 3 young girls and a couple of elderly ladies provided the ‘gift-wrapping’ service from their booth. We paid $2 per gift-wrap. The girls were working hard from morning on their day off from school, finding something to giggle about every minute. Their faces were bright and happy. At the end of it, we pulled the money out to pay, pleased with their service. It was then they pointed to the donation box sitting on the table. All the money from their service was going to old-age charity. I was suddenly jolted from my shopper’s excitement! What is it that as an adult I have to spend something to find happiness whereas as a child you find happiness at what you do? De jâ vu?
It is not that we can’t be the same way. It’s just that the way was forgotten somewhere when you were ‘growing up’, competing, surviving and trying to ‘make it’. It won’t be the last time that we will be reminded that being an adult is a lot complicated than it should be. Yes, we cannot afford to be naïve. We can’t let someone take advantage of us. We have to be cautious and learn whom to trust. In all this, don’t we have some room for innocence and curiosity that we can nurture in a corner of our heart and remember that we have crossed the age of innocence and we can afford to be brave and be leaders of our souls into doing good that inspires others, the way the young girls inspired me? Once, I was young too as were you. I used be helpful and reach out to those who needed me. Somewhere down the line things changed. I started helping people who, I needed. I look back and see that I am not as happy as I used to be then. It must be something to do with the magic of making another person happy-the one who really needs it. In the end, being an idealist is not all that bad. This year think new. Conjure up something. Wishing you all a perfect ‘09!
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