I've never been a big fan of object lessons. They're usually very moralistic and preachy, and not very entertaining. And I always feel like the point of object lesson should be to teach by entertaining in some form or another. Or at least, hold one's interest.
But the past couple weeks I feel like God has been showing me a couple things through object lessons. Not stories that people tell, but things that I have seen.
The first case happened when Mom and I were driving through downtown Eugene. There was a sign holder on the side of the road, and usually those people are very pitiful. But he had a sign that said, "Smile, Life's too short to have a ****y attitude." And he genuinely seemed to be embodying this statement. He also had a dog that he offered to bring out for Mom and I to pet, which we declined because the dog was sleeping and we did not wish to wake him.
As I looked at this man, it really struck me. Here is someone that the world looks down on. And yet he's smiling, and he seems satisfied with where he's at. That's something I want to learn. Even if the rest of the world looks down on me: for the way I dress, for how I live, or for my morals, I want to be able to just look up at everybody else and smile.
Another thing that stood out to me happened while we were down in Mexico a couple weeks ago. I was walking my dog Bailey through the village where we were staying, and there were a lot of dogs in their own homes and yards/kennels. As we were walking down the little street, there was a cacophony of barking and yipping and all sorts of other dog related noises. Bailey noticed them, but crossed to the other side of the road and kept walking without making a peep or even really looking up. I was highly impressed by that. I think that when the rest of the world around me is getting all worked up over things, be they drama, politics or just the newest things to get mad about; I want to not get involved. I want to be able to not bark back, even when everybody around me is yapping their heads off.
A third incident that inspired me also happened down in Mexico. We were there for my cousin's wedding, and apparently there's a tradition where the bride and groom stand a few yards away from each other, each holding a box. Wedding guests put money in the boxes for the couple to take steps towards each other. But a couple of ladies put money into the groom's box and made him step backwards instead. 😁 Afterwards I was talking to Tia Margy, who moved down to Mexico years ago from the States. She was so excited that she had made the groom walk backwards instead of forwards. She had seen a couple of people do that at previous wedding and thought it was fun. So she did it herself this time.
I was so impressed by the joy she had in that simple act. Tia Margy has lived in Mexico for as long as I've known she existed. But she isn't bored with it. She's always excited about a new thing she just learned- a new skill, a new insight into Mexican culture, a new project. Her life could be monotonous if she let it, I guess, but she's never bored. I want to learn to notice the things around me and take interest in them like she does.
That's all.
I hope you're all having fantastic days and looking forward to more of spring and eventually a summer! (I personally am looking forward to my birthday at the end of the month.)
K, byeee!
~Dolly
No comments:
Post a Comment