We are in a beautiful town with clean water, toilets, furnished houses, an abundance of food, great transportation, a working economy, and great natural resources. This country is a place that’s growing and by no means could be classified as a third world country. It is a blessed placed.
But America experiences so many more blessings.
Today, I offered to go to the market with Momma Cristina. The trip took about 3 hours and she does that trip almost every day to insure her family has fresh food. There are no nearby markets. When we arrived at a shop with watches, she stared longingly at a watch that cost about $7 US dollars. She said she broke her last one, and whispered that it was just too much money. She had to walked away (and I was proud I understood her). At that point, I knew I had to go back and get it. We ran into Suze, Cam, and Kaylin, who ran to the market. I pulled Suze aside and told her we had to run back and get the watch. Yelling “espera” to the others, we made our way to the store, picked out the watch, and stashed it away in my bag. We returned home and gave it to her. Her face lit up and she explained how much she loved watches. It was the most heart-warming and perfect moment. She really loved it.
Let’s back track. We are here in this established, clean, well-off place. Where people have their basic needs taken covered. But a $7 watch is too expensive. We wouldn’t even blink our eyes at spending or even loosing $7. That is equivalent to a coffee and cookie, a Taco Bell meal. To Momma Cristina, it was a weeks-worth of food or necessary house hold items. It was such a blessing only we could afford. Perspective.
The Colombian people do not waste a thing. If you have one bite of food on your plate, you eat it or give it away. That’s the reason that they can survive and survive comfortably. What would it look like if we cut down on our waste? How much more could we give away? Perspective.
And just wait, compare this place to other places around the world. It would seem rich and blessed beyond all measure. This safe, warm, and dry house with few possessions would be a mansion to millions. Perspective.
We need to remember what we have and what we are blessed with. Sure, we are always told to be thankful and appreciative. But next time you feel like you don’t have everything you need or want, remember the watch story. Remember to keep your blessings in perspective.
