By way of a little background, I have always considered myself a fairly liberal man (not speaking in the political sense), but one who believes in traditional family values. Sadly however, while I hear an awful lot of people preach that same sentiment, I rarely see any meaningful demonstration of it in the occurrences of every day life. It’s great party conversation but that’s pretty much where it ends.
Occasionally though, I am witness to clean, indisputable evidence that some people really do practice it in their own lives. Thus renewing – albeit until the next disappointment comes along – my faith in human kind. Such was the case at the home of a Shri Lankan woman I met not long ago, while witnessing a cultural “cleansing ceremony” in the back yard.
There were a handful of people there, most of whom were down-to-earth, linen wearing, gluten-free, I-don’t-use-chemicals-on-my-body, folks with a strong air of “natural” about them. Children, adults, and one guy playing the hand-drum with more hair than anyone I have ever seen. During this ceremony there were a number of burning candles placed around a blanket on which the cleansee would lay. Little children were running around, as little children do. Do you see where I’m going here?
My attention shifted to the kids running around with thoughts of little pant-legs alight, while frantic mothers gasp and flail. Instead what happened, was not a single child, at any point, for even an instant, was ever allowed to be anywhere near those burning candles. If one would venture toward any of the tiny fire-hazards, an adult would simply usher the child away. Even the hair-guy. Nice.
Later, while with my companion I remarked on my observation.
Her response, “Well, it takes a village…”
More later…
--- It's never enough for my particular bent to be the only thing people read. Your feedback is valuable because it lets me and others see multiple perspectives. You are invited and encouraged to leave a comment on this or any other post.
I got to celebrate my Granddaughter’s and my grandson’s birthdays in September. Took the drive to North Vegas and spent a couple days with them. I made a couple toy boxes for the kids, but it seems that their parents liked the toy boxes while the kids loved the contents. Either way, it was wonderful being able to do the Granddad thing and spend time with them. I honestly didn’t think that grandparenthood would be so wonderful but I have to admit… I dig it!
