BENDING FOR DIRTY DIME
Think why do people bend down in a street and pick up dirty dimes? They delay a few seconds and the next event in their life comes right on time. The only thing we don’t know would it be a brick fallen from roof or some million dollar wining ticket. I do remember Japanese lady who came to Vilnius as a tourist in the spring of 1998. Winter was almost over but icicles there were yet hanging down from buildings on the main street. One big and mighty icicle had fallen down from the roof of the Ministry of Communications right on the ladies head. Her scull was broken and she was taken to emergency brain surgery but stayed alive as far as I recall this sad event. The only question is “Why?” Why travel tens of thousands miles to walk down that unfortunate street and get bumped by the piece of ice? How many dimes she had picked up before?
What awaits you behind the corner?
First never ask “Why?”, if you do not like true answers, inconvenient truths or just any answers that disturb your general understanding of the world. Better avoid this question at all and put “technical” questions I’d call them instead like “who, when, and how?” Especially after something happens to us and we ask the same question crucified Jesus shouted to his Father “Why me, God?” (“Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?” – “My God, my God, WHY have you forsaken me?”). Of course no doubt Jesus knew “why” but we don’t.
This dirty dime case we were discussing in the Antiquities shop in Pilies street. Then the owner of the shop suddenly remembered his own story. “Why do I had to drink this ugly muck in a bottle of beer?” he asked. It was a bottle he fairly accidentally picked up in a supermarket. Later he called free quality control number and they sent him a box of beer from the brewery to settle this unpleasant issue. “Why I had to?!” reiterated owner of the shop. It seemed there’s no comprehensible answer to this. But then I said: “Hey! They owed you a box of beer! You were destined to get it. This was the sense of drinking later on to violently vomit the filthy ugly being.” We all laughed.
When I told the antiquity shop owner story to my wife at home she said. “Do you know “why” we changed a flat twenty years ago?” I was curious to know the truth. “Because I hated to drink coffee with cockroaches,” she answered. Indeed. Our new soviet style block built apartment was infested with cockroaches. And this was for good. Now we live in the Old Town. Since then we enjoy calm, nice place, few neighbours and relatively happy everyday life.
When we sincerely ask ourselves WHY we should brace for adventures.
Tags: destiny, fate, Jesus, questioning
