In the hushed hour of mid-morning, where the wind had uncommonly let out its swooshing sound and the leaves and flying creatures embraced the day, my teenage self took a seat in the comfort of my grandfather’s recliner, I took in things from his perspective, and realised that depending on which end of the table one sat, things could be viewed differently. It all depended on my interpretation of what I had seen, and what I believed it to be.
While seated in the chair, a young girl passed by, she walked by with enthusiasm, but less care whatsoever, till she hit her leg against a stone, and realised she could have avoided the hit, if she had been more careful, so when she passed by later, she was enthused about seeing the stone again, because she saw an opportunity to be careful, yet happy. What she didn’t know was that the hit was a mould into what she would grow up to become.
Few minutes later, a bird from the tree stole my attention as it gave out the loudest chirp, outshining the others and refusing to give them the chance to chirp along. As it chirped, it gave off a noise that sounded quite unpleasant to me, because I enjoyed the melody of distinct chirps than a loud chirp from a single bird trying to own the stage of attention. Before I could say jack, it lost its balance and fell to the ground as alone as it sang. Indeed, the Bible proved itself right as always; pride does lead to disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom–in the same way, those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.
Noticing the birds, my attention went to the oldest tree in front of my house, as it shed off its leaves almost every minute, as though contributing a rhythm to the swooshing sound of the wind. Beauty will definitely fade with time, but with firm roots–with a right attitude, one will definitely stand tall–unwavering, as the oldest tree stood firm among the lot.
My attention shifted from the ancient, but glorious tree, as my neighbour stepped out of his house, with songs of praise that put a smile on my face. “Good morning, my dear.” He greeted, and I responded with an equivalent energy. He was clothed in a dark shirt, because he was mourning his mother who had just passed two days ago. His eyes were still puffed up from the excessive weeping, but his heart still glorified the One who gave him strength to move on each day, and there, it was clear that real strength could only come from the Lord. The joy of the Lord is really our strength!
Suddenly, my grandfather returned from wherever he had been the past hour. On seeing him, I attempted to get up from his seat, but he asked that I sit for a while, and then, he sat on the chair beside me. “How did you find things from my end of the seat, Nana?”
“Grandpa,” I looked around and looked back at him, “I see why you never want to leave this seat. Everything around us relays lessons of life–even those we term insignificant highlight the most valuable lessons, but we just need to see them.” I told him, and he nodded in agreement.
“Making meaning out of your surroundings, and finding worth in the little things has got everything to do with a good heart and focus, Nana, and you exude these things,” he said, and I felt my cheeks flare up. “Indeed, you deserve a place in my seat!”
