This pic & the words remind me of a story I was told long ago ,I wish i could remember it all but...
There was a man and his son they lived in a small little dwelling on land in which there was a huge home and the father worked for the family in exchange for food & a place to stay.
The small living place had no roof or furniture ,it was that small.
One night the father said to the son ,
We have been invited to go up to the house tonight for a celebration,and he gave the boy formal clothes to wear as they wore simple clothing made to work in.
So they both changed and walked up to the house ,it was all lit up and when they walked into the big dining area there were platters of food and many servants walking around with even more .
After the evening was over they walked back to their small home and the boy could not wait to take off the stiff clothing and shoes.They were not comfortable and soft as his old clothes.
The father said to his son , do you see that if you work very hard that one day you can be rich instead of having to be poor.
The boy thought about this ,looked at his father and said, you know I feel very sad for the family and their children having to live poor as we live rich.
The father looked at his son and said,what do you mean?
The son said those children are not with their parents,they spend the day with the servants ,and their food is not like ours as we cook together and have food made by our hands and made with love and cooked as we like.
And they have those bright lights and we have the sun in the day and the stars at night to give us light.
I see... the boy said,you work very hard and we are rich for that.
He gave his father a hug and a kiss and said Thank you so much.
You work hard and you have shown me rich and poor
I am so happy to be loved and have all we do because of you ,father.
That night when the boy said his prayers to God he thanked him for all the riches in his life and for the love and the creation of the world as without nature and his loving father ,he would not be as happy and as grateful for all he has.
His father wanted to show his son how the rich live,and his son showed him that rich and poor can be seen differently and that
He was giving his son a good,happy life.
Times have changed and it is sad.
My grandmother used to say how many pairs of shoes do you need ? You have one pair of feet.
My family was very conservative,when you buy something ,you buy the best you can as it will last longer.
Buying a sweater used to be for warmth,now we all have closets full of clothing.We have become very materialistic
Material things were not important to her.
My grandparents came from Italy.
My grandfather worked hard.
They put both their boys through college
They paid cash for their car,home,and my grandfather had a garden .We ate fresh food,vegetables and all food homegrown.
We had fruit trees and grape vines .
We had rosh bushes and rose trellises.
I look back now and life was so different .
We didnt have to lock our doors,we spent all time with family and my Grandparents succeeded in life for what they wanted to accomplish, their sons both led full happy lives and we the children all went to college and again we all were successful.
Life was much simplier then .
My Grandfather told me one Holiday to look around the room.
He said all you need in Life is right before you.
Family,love,food,drink ,a home and if you go seeking for more you will see nothing will make you happier and you will live a happy successful life if you appreciate what you have and know the difference between needs and wants.
He was so right.
There were no divorces back then,people communicated,they worked it out.
Now,people marry and divorce like it is nothing,yet what happens is it destroys family,finanicially it can create chaos and more importantly
The children are effected ....it takes two to create a child and two to bring up that child in all aspects.
But that is a subject for another day.....
