Monday, April 03, 2006

the boy swimming elsewhere

You can’t assume to know what goes on in people’s minds or what they feel. The more people I get to know, the more I know that you don’t know much about people you know. There’s ocean’s of emotions and ponderings and views and feelings and memories. With some people you can talk for hours or even days and not even dip into that sea.

And so human beings tend to swim in self-pity instead, assuming no one has gone through what they’re going through right now. When someone says, “I know how you feel”, we are sure that they don’t. Who knows, maybe they do. It just might be that they’ve been through something similar while you don’t realise it.

About three years ago, I met Abdul in West Africa. He was from Sierra Leone and he had no hands, no family, no home. All lost because of the war there I guess. He never told me what happened exactly. He just smiled…a lot! What did he have to smile about? Somehow he managed to have joy and swim in it!

13 comments:

Lucas said...

that's a nice story!
We are just big complainers in the West! Be happy ;)

Anonymous said...

annegreet, very interessting post, yet it is something we all know. i especially liked your choice of words in the following sentence: "He just smiled…a lot! What did he have to smile about? Somehow he managed to have joy and swim in it!"

annegreet said...

Yep, I tend to write about things we all know and forget all the time...
Thanks for your comment, paradigma, I'm curious as to how wondered onto my blog. (c:

Anonymous said...

The question questions,
And the dreamer dreams,
And so the wonderer will wonder,
it is what they tend to do.

annegreet said...

Breeze to hhth to here... Good guess?

Anonymous said...

ezechiël 28:3 ?

Anonymous said...

yes, that could have been a gateway
although that is not how the wonderer wondered here

annegreet said...

So you ask if I'm as arrogant as the ruler of Tyre?
Je Engels is goed trouwens, maar je schrijft met een licht Vlaams accent...is wel grappig.
Fun to have intriguing people comment here.
Breeze to sarahm to here then?

Anonymous said...

hmm i don't know what your bible says in ezekiel 28:3 but mine says the following: "For sure, you are wiser the Daniel, no secret is hidden for you"
(and don't even try to be a smartass about the words 'for sure' not being a very good translation (o: )
Add a questionmark to ezekiel 28:3 and then something special happens: a slightly sarcastic question can be read between the lines.

do i think you're arrogant=> not yet

breeze to sarah indeed :)

annegreet said...

I read your sarcasm the first time, but did u read the verse in its context? As I've said before...I'm aware that I'm often unwise. I'm not proud of that.

Anonymous said...

the first time i referred to ezekiel i did not write it from the assumption that you are an advanced biblereader, so i only quoted the verse and not the verse placed in it's context.
but let's not discuss this any further before this whole thing gets lame ^_^

anyway, 'the boy swimming elsewhere' is a cathcy title since he has no hands. but still, i know what you mean by it and you're right; we should all learn that sometimes, ... we can swim elsewhere ;)

annegreet said...

Hush me then? ;)
You are right!

Anonymous said...

Hush you? nah, this is your little part of the web, and it's inappropiate for a guest to hush the host/hostess
<²_²>