Okay, no pictures on this one, but I just have to tell you what happened to me the other day......
The driver was trying to get an extra house key made for the maid. The first time he came back with it, it didn't work. So the next day, he took the key back to the key maker and had it "filed". It still didn't work. In the meantime, Corey said he had an extra house key we could give the maid. Great! Problem solved. So I threw away the "filed" key that didn't work.
I told the driver not to worry about fixing the key that didn't work because Corey found an extra key. He asked me what I did with the "filed" key. I said I threw it away. "Oh, madam! You shouldn't throw it away" he said. I told him it was no big deal, don't worry.
Two days later, the doorbell rings at 6:30am and one of the guards hands me a small key. For a second, I didn't think anything of it....there are 5,000 keys in this house (to various doors, cabinets, etc) but when I felt it and looked closer, I realized it was the maimed "filed" key. What? I second guessed myself.....but I knew I threw it away. So I stuck it in my pocket. I could feel a conversation with the driver coming on....
So at an appropriate time, I pulled the key out of my pocket and showed it to the driver and said, "Ayyappan, look what I have". He looked at it and chuckled. I told him I was very shocked to see it. He explained that the guards (and probably everyone including him) goes through ALL of our garbage......EVERYTHING! Looking for things to sell or keep or maybe hoping to find money. And to be successful at finding that little key......somone had to do some serious searching!
Oh well, it just adds another perspective to all the other perspectives I have been enlightened by in the 6 weeks I have been here. And all day today I have been so self- conscience about what I've thrown away. I was just about to toss 3 overly ripe, mushy, black bananas but went outside and gave them away...they were well received.
What did you throw away today? .......are we a wasteful people?
I bet you'll think twice about everything you throw away now, eh? A good habit to get into I guess. Reduce, Recycle, Reuse!
ReplyDeleteLove the stories. I shall live vicariously through you because I don't know if I have the courage to leave North America. I'm a whimp. I just read about adventures. I don't really want to live them.
What an interesting experience. Yes, it makes you think about how much we have and how much we waste.
ReplyDeleteSeriously Karrie, I feel like I'm reading my life in Jakarta. We knew they went through everything when I kept seeing stuff I'd thrown away in the garage and they were using it! I started just setting stuff by the door and they used what they wanted and somehow got rid of what they didn't. It's a funny lifestyle!
ReplyDeleteLiterally, one person's trash is another person's treasure.
ReplyDelete