The Power of Perspective
“Well, that’s just fantastic,” I thought to myself as my car came around the bend, bringing my house—and its un-mowed yard—into view. I can’t remember who told me they would have it mowed, but I do know I was ready to be done with an especially long work week.
I was forced to work late that Friday, so my family had already left for the fun evening we were supposed to spend together. So, like the martyr I felt justified to be, I got changed and did what I had to do. Instead of resting, I mowed the yard—each stripe fueling my indignation.
With my frustration meter buried deep in the red, I happened to look up to see my neighbor, Sam*, watching me intently.
In that moment, it felt like a hundred thoughts meshed and aligned, like a complex gearbox springing to life.
He sat there in his electric wheelchair, oxygen tank nestled in his lap like a newborn baby, watching me with eyes that said, “What a lucky man.”
Lucky was the last thing I felt—burdened by tremendous stress at work and mowing after a long day while my family was out enjoying their Friday night.
Memories of Sam spontaneously mowing our yard just because he wanted to came flooding back. But as cancer ravaged his lungs, he was resigned to simply watch me—a frustrated young man HAVING to do the things Sam would have loved to GET to do.
In that moment, all of my anger and martyrdom flew away like my grass clippings caught in the breeze.
How short-sighted and small I was being. Yes, I was under real stress with real responsibilities—growing a business and raising a family. But in focusing on all the things I HAD to do, I failed to appreciate that, for many others, my “burdens” would have been gladly welcomed as “blessings.”
Sam would have loved to mow that yard one last time, but sadly, he passed weeks later. But what hasn’t passed from that moment is the poignant reminder that my “Have To’s” are almost always someone else’s “Get To’s.”
Our duties and responsibilities are inextricably linked to our blessings.
When I’m in a season of feeling the weight of responsibility, I think of Sam, watching me with those longing eyes, and I’m reminded to carry out my responsibilities with joy and appreciation.
Maybe you are currently wrestling with some “Have To’s” in your life right now. What are the blessings that lie behind them? And how many people in the world would trade places with you in a heartbeat?