What part of reality is imperfect?

The reality may be one but each one of us experienced the faces of reality in a different ways. When one is living in abundance throughout her or his life, she or he may perceived that the bigger reality must be in great abundant too. Indeed, how many of us have had the chance (s) of experiencing both realities of abundance and acute poverty like the one captured in the above image?


In reality too, there are various kinds of poverty - material, emotional, spiritual, and perhaps one may encounter other type of poverty that are not mentioned here. Whatever type of poverty it may be, I'm drawn to believe that, this part of poverty or suffering that is unfortunately "imperfect." Yet how many of us could live humbly with imperfection if such is the given reality? Personally, such reality make me say to myself, "I'll not be truly in abundance until all is collectively in abundance!"



In my third pastoral visits to Pius' Ward today, the selected theme for our simple and short reflections on the Word od God is about "suffering." There are two new comers in the ward today, both female in their mid 20's. What's obvious during this time of my pastoral visit was that, in here inmates were still suffering but almost all with a smiling faces! I'm sure it was not because of the prescribed medication intake that caused them to artificially smile. I dare trust it was because they hold on to the tangible hope that they are indeed on the road of complete recovery. In other words, it's just a matter of time that they will eventually out of the ward, and be united with their loved ones ever again. God's willing!

Yes, my friends, the reality in which we live may be imperfect - imperfect because the reality is obvious or perhaps it was the product of our self-negative views of the universe - but it would benefit us more if we choose instead to perceive the given reality, positively and try to embrace it as 'friend' instead of denying it as 'foe.' When one consciouly embraced the given reality - edifying or limiting - as friend then actually one is saving the unnecessarily energy of reconciling oneself with it.
As one of the inmates says during our sharing session: "Indeed suffering made me close to God like never before." And the other remarks: "Suffering is the direct result of my fleshly desires, but eventually, it is the renewed forces of God's Spirit within me that shall prevail!"