I was sitting in a cafe writing the other day. As I sat there immersed in my work, an older age brother and sister walked in with their elderly mother. Their mother was assisted by a walker and the careful guiding and navigating of her ‘kids’. It took quite a bit of shuffling around to get the seating just right. The elderly mother was hard of hearing, as evidenced by the siblings’ loud, raised voices used when trying to communicate with her. The mother seemed out of it and not too fussed about what was going on.

Then the son took out a hearing aid, placed it in his mother’s ear, and a different woman emerged. It was almost like she came alive. Despite her frailty and not so working order her smile beamed across the cafe. Her laughter caught the ear of everyone around her. As I looked at her I could see the sparkle of life fully brilliant in her eyes. Nothing was stopping her from being herself. She may be in a run down vehicle but what was going on inside certainly had some puff left.

Community, Thoughts to ponder, Wisdom storiesJenn Shallvey19 August 2012

First world problems, or are they?

Today I was listening in the car to my local radio station and had a laugh. The lighter topic of the morning was about ‘first world problems’. Now if you have not heard of this concept before here’s a quick snapshot. Such problems are those that can occur in developed societies, cultures and countries with high standards of living. First world societies can afford non essentials, luxuries, conveniences. When looked at objectively in the bigger context of including the problems of those in both second and third world societies, a ‘first world problem’ can then appear trivial and not worth complaining about. In other words the phrase is used to give someone a bit of perspective.

Examples abound. The one being shared on the radio to start the conversation was about how an ill fitted cup lid affected the radio hosts ability to drink her coffee. Others followed. I liked the one about an app not downloading fast enough on one’s smartphone.