When doing nothing means so much

We had our monthly prayer meeting yesterday, September 25 (OT: To my good friend Rose, Happy bday, mare!) and the gospel was all about the Parable of the rich man and Lazarus which says:

Luke 16:19-31 "Now there was a certain rich man, and he was clothed in purple and fine linen, living in luxury every day. A certain beggar, named Lazarus, was laid at his gate, full of sores, and desiring to be fed with the crumbs that fell from the rich man’s table. Yes, even the dogs came and licked his sores. It happened that the beggar died, and that he was carried away by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died, and was buried. In Hades, he lifted up his eyes, being in torment, and saw Abraham far off, and Lazarus at his bosom.

He cried and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue! For I am in anguish in this flame.’

"But Abraham said, ‘Son, remember that you, in your lifetime, received your good things, and Lazarus, in like manner, bad things. But now here he is comforted and you are in anguish. Besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, that those who want to pass from here to you are not able, and that none may cross over from there to us.’

He said, ‘I ask you therefore, father, that you would send him to my father’s house; for I have five brothers, that he may testify to them, so they won’t also come into this place of torment.’

"But Abraham said to him,
‘They have Moses and the prophets. Let them listen to them.’

"He said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’

"He said to him, ‘If they don’t listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded if one rises from the dead.’"

I'm quite sure most of us are familiar with this parable, we've heard this since we were young during those summer bible school. And now, in the nth time, the words were read in front of me. I know the parable by heart, and looking back, I would always ask, why would the rich man went to hades when he did nothing to Lazarus. I mean, he didn't do any harm to Lazarus, so I was confused, but didn't bother to answer the confusion I had. It was a few years back that I realized that doing nothing was exactly the point. He didn't do anything. Didn't even bother to share some good food to the poor man when I am sure his were overflowing. You know it may sound so simple but when you look beyond the words and try to go deeper, it means a lot, it means so much. Maybe there was a point in our lives that we were personified by the rich man, maybe currently we are the rich man...doing absolutely nothing to every Lazarus we're meeting. Lazarus isn't only the beggar in the streets, Lazarus could be a younger brother or sister asking help for his/her assignment, an office mate who wants to pour her heart out because of problems at home, parents who only misses their children and desperately wanting to be visited. Often times, it is with the simple things we could find peace. It is in our quite doing of goodness that we will be able to appreciate life.

Of Weddings and Memories

I am a person who is so fascinated with weddings. I would always browse sites, magazines, blogs, etc that deal with it. I also thought of having a career in line with weddings (maybe sooner or later it would be realized, who knows...). I don't know, I feel happy whenever a friend or a colleague tells story about wedding preparations - scouting for suppliers, attending bridal fairs, etc. I feel their excitement that I would want to hear even the tiniest of details and couldn't contain my sharing of ideas, resources and personal opinion about this and that.

Recently, I found myself browsing a friend's site about their wedding preparations with so much gusto. And without a doubt I feel the excitement for them. It's as if I was brought down memory lane having my own wedding preps, mine wasn't that long ago, though. But what is it about weddings that made me so at home with it, you may ask. Well, honestly I don't know for sure...maybe it's the event per se, from the teary-eyed bride walking down the aisle, to the solemn exchange of vows, to the lively reception, to the laughters and tears during speech...I really don't know for sure...maybe it is the memory(ies) attached to each wedding - pre-during-post. Come to think of it, even if the couple is a family or a close friend, or simply someone you just know, the fact that you shared their special day means you are an instant part of the memory that they will treasure for the rest of their lives (hopefully).

So to all of you who have decided to tie the knot, congratulations and best wishes...savor every little detail of it and treasure the memories into your hearts... :)