The source of every strength,skill and talent is God.So, no matter the status of life a person has, the value of every drop of sweat from a worker deserves to be admired.
Deuteronomy 8:17-18
You may say to yourself , "My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me." But remember the Lord your God , for it is He who gives you the ability to produce wealth...
This Labor Day Card and envelope have been made from an old magazine's sturdy pages, pressed petals from a Bromeliad flower in the AVR and the recharge voucher for my sim.
The main card : I kept the original page design of the water droplets to represent the "sweat" about to fall on the "flower" of "I Care" cut outs from my recharge voucher.
The mini -card at the bottom right can be detached. A pressed leaf with a handwritten message lifted from the Bible, one of my favorite verse. If the card is turned, the left side has the labor day greeting and the right side is left blank for personal messages.But this card is intended for my mom so I have written a note for her.
The mini card fits the envelope made from the thinner page of the magazine.It is a monochromatic page of an sparkling sea water design.
Walking to the grocery, 500 meters from our place, I passed by an old man, the street sweeper. It was my first time to see him and so was my first greeting with barely 2 months in Hongkong. He paused and greeted back. I noticed he was sweating profusely yet still had a long way to sweep. I moved on and wondered when he would ever finish sweeping when the leaves keep falling every second. He does that everyday with the street canopied with trees more than 2 kilometers stretch.
In the shop, I was still admiring his hard work when a lady asked me if I had seen Risotto rice somewhere since she couldn’t find it at the grain section. I advised her to look again and finally she found it. I completed my grocery list then off to the counter when the same lady rushed behind me in queue. Obviously she wanted further conversation, which I really didn’t feel like having at that time. I bagged my groceries fast and said goodbye but as I had expected she wanted me to wait for her so I did.
Out on the street, was still the diligent street sweeper. Unexpectedly, the lady called, “Pengyao, pengyao” please come, here’s your snack!” She handed him the pack of bread. I was sincerely touched by her generosity and it was escalated when I saw the man joyfully sweeping. The lady, turned to me smiling then said, “He has been my orphanage.” She has been doing that for 4 months ever since she arrived in Hongkong. I was amazed upon realizing the chain of events that as three strangers ,we were connected somehow in this web of life in which joy had woven us as our reward that day. The lady was filled with joy in her deed, I was glad seeing her action and the street sweeper was equally joyful evident in his work.
With this simple encounter, I have signed in my heart that in my daily experience in life, even the most ignored routines could bear fruit…of love, joy, kindness, goodness…there’s always meaning in it as long as I’m ever willing to stop, look and listen that even the tiny leaf that I stepped on our street has a story.
I believe that the tree of caring, goodness, kindness should bear fruit by measurable acts to others the only way to know if we’re reproducing. Every time I pass a street sweeper I am always refreshed and blessed. I am positive that there’s an empire of “secret orphanages” growing out there not only in our street.
Philippians 4:8
Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things
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