The Law Of The Garbage Truck
I had to go to the airport the other day and decided to go by taxi. We were driving in the outer lane when, seemingly out of nowhere, a car forced its way in front of us. My driver slammed on the brakes, which sent our car into a skid and we missed the other one by only a few inches. To crown it all, the offender wound down his window, shook a fist at us and shouted something. To my astonishment, my driver kept his cool. He just smiled and waved to the other driver in a friendly way.
‘Why did you do that, when the chap almost ruined your car and sent both of us into hospital?’ I asked.
‘Ah well,’ the driver replied, ‘I forgive him because he’s one of those who obey the law of the garbage truck. He doesn’t know what he’s doing to himself, as far too many these days are unfortunately doing.’
When I asked my man what he meant by that, he continued: ‘In my view, some folks are like garbage trucks. They are filled to the brim with the emotional debris of the frustrations, anger and disappointments that have accumulated in them with the passing of time. The more it piles up in them, the more urgently they occasionally need to relieve themselves of their rubbish by dumping some of it. They pour it into whoever gets in their way. When you meet someone like that, I believe there’s no need to take the things they are saying and doing personally. That’s why I just smile and wave, and in my thoughts wish them well. And because I believe in the power of this kind of thing, I bless them and simply move on. I never take their stuff on board and I refuse to spread it to those around me at work, at home or on the streets. They haven’t deserved that kind of treatment either. Nobody has.
‘Anyway, I believe that what we send out into the world returns to us like a boomerang. Therefore, to those who dump their rubbish on others nothing but more of the same can return. People who are content with themselves and their existence in the great scheme of things, do not allow the contents of other people’s garbage trucks to ruin their days. They know that life’s too short for regrets and that it’s better by far to love those who treat us right and pray for the ones who don’t.
‘Everybody has a different perception of life. If we think of our world as a garbage dump, that’s all we shall be able to see. We then blind ourselves to the abundance of good things that are everywhere, in people and situations alike. Slowly but surely this makes us glide into an ever darker and more gloomy view of our world. This inevitably leads to depression and an ever stronger impulse to escape from such an unpleasant place by whatever means available: alcohol, drugs – prescribed and unprescribed – and finally suicide.
‘Wise ones who choose to focus on everything that is good and positive in this life instead, get ever more involved with this side. To me, life is ninety percent perception. How we make use of the remaining ten percent depends entirely on the choices we make.’
Recommended Reading:
• ‘Varying Perceptions Of Life – Why?’
Created by Anon.
Edited by Aquarius
* * *
The above is part of ‘Words & Prayers For Healing Friendships’
If you would like some more support, please follow the link below:
‘Words & Prayers For Friendship Healing’
