Born to serve

HELLO MI neighbour! Ever wondered why you weren’t born a little over 200 years ago? Minds are now ticking backwards in wonderment. If you were born in the northern hemisphere around the year 1815 you would have experienced snow in June, freezing temperatures in July, and a killer frost in August. That year marked one of the most gloomy and extraordinary weather this world has ever seen!

For millions of people in North America and Europe, 1816 was a year without summer. This phenomenon led to failed crops and near-famine in that region and beyond. Scientists and historians later discovered that the biggest volcanic eruption in recorded human history spewed millions of tons of dust, ash and sulfur dioxide into the atmosphere from Indonesia, temporarily changing the world’s climate and dropping global temperatures by as much as three degrees. A little history lesson there.

If you were born 200 years ago you would not have seen the airplane, television, home refrigerator, computer, cell phone, DVD, iPod, etc. Your generation would have known nothing of a World Wide Web which has changed how people shop, socialise and transact business for the past 30 years. Can you imagine the .com generation operating in a 1990 economy? That’s a brain ‘burster’, don’t burden the imagination.

So why were you born in your generation? Never thought of it? And what if you were not born when you were born? Or what if you were a stillbirth? Hush. For sure, you would not be at your present age. Yeah, right. Quite likely, if you were born 30 years earlier you would have missed the opportunity to be sharing parenthood with that darling wife or husband of your dream! What joy those beautiful children bring to the relationship! Of course, there’s the flip side to that, but let’s keep it positive. And may I add that with the right treatment almost all negative situations can become positive. Just work at it.

If we take the position that all of us are here because all of us are here, we will find a greater meaning and purpose to life. People who are born in a particular generation are born to serve that generation, including some behind and some ahead. To say that a little more clearly, no one is born out of time and everyone is born because someone will need his or her service. In other words, we all enter this world NOT to be masters and servants, or to be served, but to be servants of one another. For example, I serve you by showing you another perspective on life and remind you of your right, privilege and duty to “love your neighbour as yourself and to do unto them as you would’ve wanted them to do unto you”.

As you are served today by the doctor, postmistress, bank teller and pump operator, even if service is below expectation, be thankful. Their birth had you in mind. They were breastfed, nurtured, protected, schooled, sheltered, trained and kept alive to serve you today. Mind-boggling? God made us special.

I am special, you are special. Let’s treat one another as such, without partiality.

Above all, serve God; for this, too, were you born.

THANKS TO NEIGHBOURS

■ Novie, St Andrew, for offering a dryer to a hairdresser.

■ Antoinette, St Andrew, for offering food to a hungry neighbour.

■ Neighbour, St Andrew, for offering food to neighbour in St Catherine.

■ Shawn, Kingston, offering school shoes to student who asked for one.

NEIGHBOURS’ REQUESTS

■ Shavon, asking for zinc and board… and a stove.

■ Neighbour, asking for a sewing machine.

■ Sister Carmen, St Catherine, asking for a stove.

■ Neighbour, St Catherine, father of two needs help with food for them. To help, please call Silton Townsend @ 334-8165, 8843866, or deposit to acct # 351 044 276 NCB. Alternatively, send donations to HELLO NEIGHBOUR c/o 53 Half-Way Tree Road, Kingston 10; Paypal/credit card: email: zicron22@ yahoo.com. Email: hello neigh bo ur@ yahoo. com. Visit hellomineigh bourja.blogspot.com Mr Townsend exclusively manages the collections and distributions mentioned in this column and is neither an employee nor agent of The Gleaner.