I watched a documentary about the Dalai Lama yesterday.
In this documentary, he said something about it being better to be poor. I can't remember the exact quote, but it was along the lines of people who are wealthy worrying about losing their weath. As soon as a person has something, they try for a little bit more. They want a little bit extra, they worry about losing their money, or their house, or their car... But poor people, people who are poor and have nothing beyond the most basic necessities, do not have these worries. They are glad for what they have, and don't worry about losing anything.
Now, I'm not so sure about this. It made sense when I heard it, but now, thinking about it, I wonder about bitterness setting in. I mean for the poor people. Or maybe His Holiness was speaking about people who are so poor they do not own a TV?
In any case, I bring this up because of the first part. The part about our worries being connected to wealth and material things.
See, I tend to yell a lot. I don't mean to, I keep promising myself that I'm going to calm down, to speak softly but firmly, whatever... but I always end up screaming my head off, steam pouring out my ears.
And it occurred to me this morning that I mostly yelled about material things. Toys, mostly. All over the floor. Broken. Stepped on. Boys play with toys instead of dressing in the morning. They bring them to the table and spill their milk. They leave their bathrobes - something I consider a luxury for a 6-year-old - on the floor. They argue over who gets to give the pets a treat.
I worry about taking my car in to get serviced. I worry about driving it in the snow. Steve worries about his boat during storms.
Seriously - I worry that we won't find the flights we need to go on vacation. I worry about what to bring on those vacations. I worry about finding food my family will eat on vacations.
I worry about throwing away too much food.
I guess there is something to be said about removing clutter from one's life.
2 comments:
He's right to a degree. The poor do worry. They worry about having enough to eat, about clean water, about educating their children, about keeping warm enough, about health care, about the health of their crops & livestock. They do not worry about personal media devices, cars, fashion, etc. But you can bet your bottom dollar they would change places with any of us!!
Here's a thought regarding your yelling about the boys' toys. Stop. Don't yell about anything. When you feel like yelling, count to ten, decide what the message is and calmly tell them. It sounds corny but you only have them as little guys for a few years. And, most importantly, don't expect perfection from them or yourself.
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