This is the first time I’ve participated in Lent by abstaining from something. For my first year, I’ve given up two things. The first is desserts, most notably anything with chocolate. I do enjoy my daily intake of chocolate, so it represents an actual sacrifice (albeit small compared to abstaining from meat or, even worse, coffee!)
The whole point, of course, is to respond to the sacrifice Christ has made for us. For those of us who believe, Lent can become that much more meaningful if we also devote ourselves to Christ’s greater purpose in our lives.
To this effect, the second thing I’ve given up is much more meaningful – that being privacy. You see, we’ve got some boarders this month (not hoarders, boarders).
Those who know me understand that I like my own space. I get rattled when there are too many people in a room. Hence my avoidance of bars, crowded shopping malls and Superstore.
So when my wife proposed that a Ukrainian family move in with us for a month, I was a little hesitant. We had already been sharing space with a Japanese student for the last year, which has worked out quite well, but I do have limits.
Sensing my hesitancy, Inna subtly reminded me that I had better give more than lip service to my beliefs as a church-going Mennonite. It was a good reminder!
And I must say, as much as it can be viewed as a sacrifice to share living quarters with another family, there are also benefits. New relationships are developed and a small sense of community forms. And I’m reminded of the importance of sharing, even as an adult. It’s not just a lesson for my four-year-old.
What we are doing for a month, though, is quite insignificant when compared to what another couple we know have done their entire lives.
This couple, to my knowledge, has never been without a boarder in their home. They have a master list of all their boarders over time, and the count likely exceeds one hundred. Throughout their lives, at least one person has always been sharing their living space.
I was fortunate to be able to live with this couple for my first summer job in Regina. It was a bachelor’s dream. Not only did I have meals supplied daily, but in the last two weeks, I was supplied with my wife-to-be. That was a bonus. If it hadn’t been for this couple’s generosity, I could still be living a lonely, futile existence (not that there’s anything wrong with the single life!)
It was their approach to generous living that inspired us to take on a boarder ourselves. Once we had our own house, we had the opportunity to host a student from Ukraine. Little did we know that this would result in yet another Froese romance and one more Ukrainian wedding. Seeing the opportunity, my brother swept in quite quickly.
So we’re on to our third boarder now, and our first family. Things are getting interesting. But I suspect it’s always better to have an interesting life than an uninteresting one.
For all my issues with having my own space, it’s a pertinent reminder that many people in our society struggle with loneliness and isolation. The sense of community that once existed in North America is becoming less common. Unless you live in a small town where everyone knows everyone, people now live fairly anonymously. It’s likely contributed to many social/psychological ills, including increased rates of depression. Deductive reasoning would suggest that having more people around reduces your chances of psychological illness.
It’s one of the untold benefits of sharing your home.
That being said, I still have limits.
No comments:
Post a Comment