It hits me at some point every week...Wow, I think, I'll never ever know what that's like. Sometimes it's something for which I'm grateful, sometimes it's something I kinda wish would cross my path. Most often, it reminds me how blessed my life has been. I challenge you to make your own list. It's a good exercise in how to be content with what you have (which is also the title of a great book by Timothy Miller).
10. Abject Poverty/Extravagant Wealth
I watched a very stark documentary entitled "Rich Hill" last night on my PBS app. It was produced by Tracy Droz Tragos and chronicles the lives of three teenage boys in Rich Hill, MO. Their stories are poignant and at times, seemingly hopeless. Living conditions are bleak, as is the prospect of a brighter future for these boys and their families. Andrew, the most optimistic of the three, says he's confident that God will someday recognize him and help him. Broke my heart.
Juxtaposed against a scene where the father (the only one present among the three families) was heating water by a variety of means - (sitting a pan of water on an inverted iron), microwaving water, dipping a curling iron in a jug of water (!) - to fill up the bathtub was a scene at the county fair where pies were being auctioned off for $3,200 a pop...
When Ron and I were first married, we didn't have much. Ron was in school and I made $134 a week. When Kate was born 13 months after we got married, I quit work, and Ron quit school to work full-time. We lived in a trailer and it was hard. When Ron did go back to school, I got a job on staff and, because of that, tuition was free. We lived semester to semester on Pell Grants and my $8,500 yearly salary. We try not to take the comfortable life we have now for granted. But it's awfully hard to be content when there are advertisements like this... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qGJSI48gkFc
On the flip side, gluttonous wealth is appalling to me. Every once in awhile, maybe while I'm paying bills, I wonder, what's old Paris Hilton up to right now? Probably not payin' bills. Probably not doin' much of anything. Ron and I are fans of the "Million Dollar Listing" franchise on Bravo. It's INSANE that people - a lot of people - have enough money to pay cash for $11.5 million homes. And many times it's for a vacation home. I know there are lots of wealthy people who are very philanthropic and I applaud them for their efforts. So...really...you wouldn't miss a few thou so Ron and I could get away this summer once he's nursed me back to health after my upcoming knee replacement, right? For the scores of millionaires who read this humble blog, 'twould be a nice gesture.
9. Playing at Carnegie Hall
I love hearing a good grand piano's rich, mellow tones, played by grand masters of the art. I once dreamed of being able to tickle the ivories with great polish and flair. But, alas. My pianistic accomplishments died early on when my teacher - how can I put this delicately? Well, she died. (And her name was Mrs. Dyer... that should have been my first clue that piano prowess was not to be a talent I possess). Actually, I don't think she died (I'm sure she has by now), but she did have a heart attack right before my first recital. I'm loathe to think that it was because I showed absolutely knack for 3/4 time or figuring out what all those black dots and funny squiggles were for. Years and years later I acquired an iota of ability to read music, but mainly I just listen to it for weeks on end and memorize the stuff. Trying to keep time AND read music was is way above my pay grade. All you band dandies out there...I am humbled by your abilities.
Next time...a couple more
Side note: Tracy Droz Tragos also produced "Be Good. Smile Pretty," a heart wrenching documentary about her efforts to find out about her father, who died when she was three months old, in Vietnam.
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