Ecclesiastes 4: 9-12
9 Two are better than one,
because they have a good return for their labor:
10 If either of them falls down,
one can help the other up.
But pity anyone who falls
and has no one to help them up.
11 Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.
But how can one keep warm alone?
12 Though one may be overpowered,
two can defend themselves.
A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.
During the time we lived in China we experienced many things that have amazed, saddened and touched our lives.
One day I was walking home from the supermarket and I heard this amazing sound reverberating through the streets in my area. I am one of those guys who isn’t musical at all but I know what I like. And, I think that this guy was good, very good. A lot of other people thought so too because people began coming out of shops and crowding around the footpath to hear where this amazingly beautiful sound was coming from.
From, among all the people emerged its source. It was a guy pushing in front of him a trolley with a portable PA system and on top of that he had a donation box. The first thing I noticed about his person was that he was dressed very poorly. Xian is quite cold and he only had on a fairly thin coat that was quite dirty. The next thing I noticed was that he had a white cane draped over his arm. He was also blind. It appeared the way he survived was to literally sing for his supper.
I had to go into a shop to get a couple of things and by the time that I came out he was very close. But, he had stopped. He was still singing but he couldn’t go any further forward because the edge of his trolley was caught on the edge of the wheel of a pushbike.
Although it was obvious to everyone else he couldn’t see what he was trying to push past. He was just stuck in the same place, singing beautifully but unable to move forward.
I watched for a short period of time and saw that no one was going to help him. I decided that I was going to sort this out and moved the bike wheel out of his way. Straight away he was able to start moving forward again. As he went past he thanked me (xie xie).
The beauty of a good partnership is that sometimes you are there to clear the way for each other. What can seem like an insurmountable problem for one may be solved very simply by the other. Together you create something of far greater value than what could be done alone.
“People are like stained glass windows: They sparkle and shine when the sun is out, but when darkness sets in their true beauty is revealed only if there is light within.”