Tis the Season...

POINT TO PONDER

We have flown the air like birds and swum the sea like fishes, but have yet to learn the simple act of walking the earth like brothers.

                                                        - Martin Luther King Jr.

 

STORYLINE

Every holiday season I think of an incident I witnessed a few years back during the days leading up to Christmas. I was sitting with my family having dinner at our favorite pizza spot.

    A ding from the door's bell alerted the room that another customer had arrived, actually two. I looked up midway through my third slice and caught sight of a young man, college age, fresh faced, and full of life. He stepped in and turned back to hold the door open and behind him as an older man walked in, hunched over, his clothes more like tattered blankets, stripped, and draped over his bony shoulders. His took the first step in, his once white sneakers covered in black soot, and passed in through the doorway. He looked up at the room, his beard cascading carelessly from his blunted chin as his eyes darted apologetically beneath his heavy brows. The young man ushered him in as customers from other tables started to catch sight of the two men.

    As they stepped up to the counter the murmuring picked up. Eyes looked up at them and then shifted away. A lady in the booth adjacent to ours looked at the two and turned to her family and said, “that's disgusting.” The young man and the homeless man put in their order and made their way through the restaurant trying to find a place to settle down for their meal.

    As they made their way through, couples tensed as they neared their table, families relaxed as they passed by, and finally they found a booth they liked and sat down. They had managed to find the one booth right next to the lady who had made it clear she was disgusted by the homeless man's presence. She gasped audibly when they sat down.

    The young man looked up at her and said, “he's a human being too, he needs to eat just like we do.”

    Promptly, the lady got up with her family to leave, “take the booth, I've lost my appetite.”

REFLECTION

What's your end of the year reflection?

 

 

Comments

[AW]

And sisters.
Thanks

Have a great Holiday & Happy New Year!

[chiaoju]

I was having the exact same conversation with my bf and his stepdad just the other day. We are now living in a world filled with very educated people as compared to the olden days and people are now doing great things technology wise, but yet, to have these so called educated smart people portray a simple act of kindness can be close to impossible. I'm not talking about every single human being, but majority is behaving in an overly individualistic manner (if there's such a term). All we need is for everyone to just treat a human being like how he/she is supposed to be treated. It's just disappointing that such a simple thing cannot be done by so-called geniuses living in this era.

[Sam]

We need to be grateful for all the moments in our lives. The good ones for they bring us joy and great memories and the sad moments which teaches us something about life. Happy a Happy New Year!

[A friend from a distant land]

After reading this article, I’m truly pondering if it’s really all that difficult to treat another human being well, be it at home or at work.
Just a thought.

[microCEO]

Thanks for this thoughtful story and great quote by Dr. King.
Here's are 2 more quotes that I remembered upon reading your anecdote,
"It is a puzzling thing. The truth knocks on the door and you say, "Go away, I'm looking for the truth," and so it goes away. Puzzling."
"We're in such a hurry most of the time we never get much chance to talk. The result is a kind of endless day-to-day shallowness, a monotony that leaves a person wondering years later where all the time went and sorry that it's all gone."
-Robert M. Pirsig

Happy holidays to everyone!

[MK (Korea)]

Thanks for your friday reflection. It always make me happy and let me to be reflected my life.