Life in Small Bites

Pre-dawn Jakarta, Indonesia:  Sitting in the back of my Mercedes I was wallowing in self-pity.  My driver had stopped at a traffic light while I was caught-up in feeling over-worked, unacknowledged, and under-appreciated.

For the last three full days and nights I had been working non-stop to finalize reports and a presentation for a regional senior management conference to be held in Singapore.   I felt that neither staff nor regional management knew or cared how hard I had been working.

As I casually looked to my left I saw a man with an out-stretched arm squatting on the roadside three feet from my car.  A small cup dangled from his disfigured hand.  He had no nose, no fingers, and no toes.  He was a leper who had arrived in the early darkness and would likely remain in place all day hoping to stay alive through the alms he could elicit from passing motorists.  He was a leper of advanced age.

In an instant my self-pity vanished.  A feeling of compassion washed over me.  Stronger than the sense of compassion was the emotion of thankfulness – profound thankfulness for the health, safety, and economic conditions of self and family.  I had studied and worked hard to earn the management position and benefits I currently enjoyed.  Yet I had no answer why I was born in America into a nurturing family providing me security and opportunities while the leper outside my window was living a life with a severely damaged body and little hope for a better future.

The traffic light turned green and as we sped toward the airport my spirits soared in appreciation for all my blessings and the expectation of ever-better tomorrows.  I was truly privileged.  It became clear that ‘privileges have responsibilities’.

In the years since, I have worked to practice my responsibilities – my contributions to my family, friends, and community.  The accepting of responsibility did not emanate from the notion that I was trying to ward off bad luck or manipulate conditional universal support – it flowed from experiencing the joy that comes from being grateful and being useful to others.  The brilliant Irish playwright in his poem, True Joy, penned,

“I am of the opinion that my life belongs to

the Whole Community – and it is my Privilege –

My Privilege to do for it whatever I can. 

For the harder I work the more I live.”

 Some people think that everything happens for a reason.  I don’t.  My experience is that for most of us we are stumbling or running so fast that we are often not even ‘in tune’ with our own experiences.  Occasionally, something happens that creates a personal ‘wake-up call’ or benchmark.  There is a welling-up of emotion, consciousness, or sense of discovery.  Whether you attribute these to a realized personal truth, the intervention of your Muse, or Divine guidance I have found these moments to be unique opportunities for personal growth and insight – sometimes bearing messages for ‘life corrections’ or new directions.

For me, these moments of clarity are precious.  Examining these insights has often guided me to new perspectives and has been the catalyst for me to take actions that yield unexpected opportunities.

What are some of the ‘wake-up calls’ that you have experienced?  How have you acknowledged, memorialized and acted on them?  How have these guided you?