Opa Johan’s Old Bike
“Well, choose a fine bike that’s strong and low-priced. But sell the old one first. I will provide for the money. This is what your grown up daughter told, ordered me to do as I teased my wife. “ said Opa Johan to me.
“Well, it isn’t nice to be hurried, ordered, do this and do that, just to buy a new bike, as though I have no dignity anymore. If she’d like to give me money, let me decide what I will do with it.
The Creator has given us hands without prerequisites. He didn’t order us to use them for praying only. We’re free to use them, to work with, to dance, to paint, to embrace, to play the piano, to bless, yes, but also to hit, strike, hurt just someone else or an animal without reason. Only, could, would you do it?. Ha, ha, ha. Our hands can accomplish a lot of things, not to speak of our feet and our organs and limbs.
I haven’t the heart to sell my old bike which has carried me thousands of kilometers, served me for years and given me a lot of pleasure to a vendor. It would be ungrateful. I’d rather give it to some one who would appreciate it If the old bike should be sold as something old and useless to a vendor, well, don’t buy me a new bike. So I said to my wife.” said Opa Johan to me.
I kept silent, reflected and remembered the saying:. “Money is a good servant but a bad master.”
Suppose I’d like to help some one in difficult circumstances, perhaps it’s better to aid him or her with a sum of money as a gift to have him free to decide for himself, rather than giving him in the form of goods.
He certainly will make money his servant and spend it wisely, with care for the most important purposes without having to lower himself by begging or asking for it.
But if we make money our master, I then thought of the speculators who made their profits by “manipulating” the dollar rates, our forests that were cut down, our lakes, marshes dried-up, nature’s treasures exploited, our conscience corrupted and a thousand and one awful things for the sake of money.
From Sinar Pagi, February 22, 1998
“Well, choose a fine bike that’s strong and low-priced. But sell the old one first. I will provide for the money. This is what your grown up daughter told, ordered me to do as I teased my wife. “ said Opa Johan to me.
“Well, it isn’t nice to be hurried, ordered, do this and do that, just to buy a new bike, as though I have no dignity anymore. If she’d like to give me money, let me decide what I will do with it.
The Creator has given us hands without prerequisites. He didn’t order us to use them for praying only. We’re free to use them, to work with, to dance, to paint, to embrace, to play the piano, to bless, yes, but also to hit, strike, hurt just someone else or an animal without reason. Only, could, would you do it?. Ha, ha, ha. Our hands can accomplish a lot of things, not to speak of our feet and our organs and limbs.
I haven’t the heart to sell my old bike which has carried me thousands of kilometers, served me for years and given me a lot of pleasure to a vendor. It would be ungrateful. I’d rather give it to some one who would appreciate it If the old bike should be sold as something old and useless to a vendor, well, don’t buy me a new bike. So I said to my wife.” said Opa Johan to me.
I kept silent, reflected and remembered the saying:. “Money is a good servant but a bad master.”
Suppose I’d like to help some one in difficult circumstances, perhaps it’s better to aid him or her with a sum of money as a gift to have him free to decide for himself, rather than giving him in the form of goods.
He certainly will make money his servant and spend it wisely, with care for the most important purposes without having to lower himself by begging or asking for it.
But if we make money our master, I then thought of the speculators who made their profits by “manipulating” the dollar rates, our forests that were cut down, our lakes, marshes dried-up, nature’s treasures exploited, our conscience corrupted and a thousand and one awful things for the sake of money.
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