Having Enough

Everywhere online or out shopping in the stores I see things I want but don't need.  There's always something new to wrench cash from my purse.  When and how do we draw the line on accumulating?  This week has been an eye-opener about the inequality of the ownership of things and I have suddenly become very grateful for the things I already have and enjoy.  Most of us have so very, very much.  We, middle-class folks, are wealthy compared to many others in this world.  Three articles and a first-hand experience this week shook me into recognizing some other people don't have the comforts of life I take for granted.

First, I read an article in a magazine about a young man from Sudan.  He spent 12 years in a refugee camp before gaining the opportunity for an education in the U.S.  He lived in a jungle with nothing but the clothes on his back for much of his early life.  Worldly goods were of no concern to his people as no one owned anything.  All that was needed was enough food, water, warmth, and to keep from being killed.  Love would have been nice too, but the young man got separated from his family.  He had nothing and no one.

Second, an article in the newspaper tells of a disabled woman driving her motorized wheelchair four hours to get a few groceries at a local food bank.  Many people with disabilities go to the same food bank for food.  They often cannot carry all of their groceries and must leave some behind.  Some of the people have problems walking or getting on and off buses.  Their lives are spent trying to survive day-to-day challenges while I can just hop in my car and get whatever I want with no problem whatsoever.

Third, American Indians living on a reservation have never had running water or electricity.  The newspaper article tells how some homes are finally getting electricity after generations of tribes struggling to do ordinary everyday household chores and cooking.  Many of the homes on reservations have no convenient appliances that most people in America enjoy and never think about--like toasters, microwaves, and refrigerators. Think about what it would be like to camp out all of your life.  Keeping warm and eating would require much labor, not to mention washing clothing and cleaning the house.  Imagine reading and working by the light of kerosene lamps.

Last, but not least, I saw hundreds of people outside the homeless shelter in Salt Lake City this week.  The weather was beautiful that day, but it probably isn't so comfortable when it is cold and wet.  Most assuredly there are tales of need, pain, and sorrow behind the hardened or worry-laden faces.  Lest we judge why those people are in dire circumstances, not all their problems have been brought on by themselves.  Most of the homeless people own only what they can carry in their backpacks or put into a shopping cart.

These are only four examples that put my abundant life into perspective and my desire for more to shame.  I have so very much!  Perhaps my wanting should be for them and not myself.  Somehow I must put energy, action, and means into having less and helping others without to get more of what they need.

Sure, that purse is SO cute.  I just don't gotta have it.