One day a very rich father took his son on a trip to the countryside to show him how it was to be poor. They spent a few days and nights at the farm of a very poor family.
After they returned from the trip, the father asked his son if he was enjoying himself. “It was wonderful, Dad”, the son replied. “Have you seen how poor people live?” The father asked. “Absolutely”, his son answered.
“I saw that we have one dog and they have four, we have a pool that reaches the middle of the garden, and they have an endless river, we have lampshades imported in the garden, and they have the starlight at night”, He said.
“We have a small piece of land to live in, and they have fields that go as far as the horizon, we have servants that serve us, and they serve others”.
“We buy our food, but they grow their own, we have walls that guard us, they have friends who keep them”. The boy’s father was left speechless. Then the son added, “It showed me how poor we are”.
Too many times we forget what we have and concentrate on what we do not have. The worthless thing of one person can be gold for someone else. It all depends on your perspective.
I am grateful for what I have and not jealous of what I do not have.
The more I understand where I am, and understand what I want and need for my family and children, I can make better decisions as a person.
When I am aware of how my decisions affect others, I am able to make decisions that are not only good for me and my family but also for the community, the state and even the planet.
Sometimes all we need is a child’s point of view to remind us of what really matters.