| Blessings and Wisdom |
| Text and photo by Liu King-pong |
Can you guess where this picture was taken? Is it the lobby of a five-star hotel in New York or London? Could it be the living room of a billionaire who owns a multinational enterprise such as Google or Mercedes Benz? Or is it perhaps a reception room of a member of the royal family in Brunei?
No, it is the living room of a private nursing home for senior citizens in the city of Coral Gables, a suburb of Miami, Florida. We can easily tell that this city is rich indeed by the many expensive cars, such as Rolls-Royces and Lamborghini Murciélagos, rolling on the roads. In a 2009 survey of 73 of the richest world cities by UBS, the largest bank in Switzerland, Miami was ranked as first in the United States and fifth in the world in terms of purchasing power. Still, I was quite amazed at how luxurious this nursing home was.
My colleague Joanna was invited to perform a repertoire of classical piano pieces for the tenants of the nursing home in January 2014. Three of us coworkers—Philip, Alice and I—went with her to check out the venue. Pam, the manager, was kind enough to show us around. She pointed out that the nursing home provided its tenants with almost everything you could think of: food, transportation, entertainment, health care, etc. “How much is the rent?” I asked. “We charge a single person around $7,000 to $8,000 per month, and the price can go up to $10,000 or more for a couple living in a room with a good view of Miami.”
We were all filled with awe. After watching a water rhythmic gymnastics lesson given to four lady tenants by a female coach in a fancy swimming pool, we said good-bye to Pam.
As we drove away, I mused, “Now I can tell what the main qualifications are to be able to live in such a cozy place.” “Money!” Alice blurted out. “Well,” I replied, “it should take more than that. What really counts are one’s blessings and wisdom.” This seemingly spontaneous assertion, uttered out of the blue, was actually a precious insight that I had acquired in the process of trying to help a Chinese lady. Being a member of the staff at the Taiwanese consulate in Miami, I often help Taiwanese nationals deal with emergencies that they might encounter in Florida.
A few months ago, Natalie, an American woman, brought her neighbor, Grace, an 88-year-old Chinese lady who was born in Shanghai but held a Taiwanese passport, to our office to ask for help. Natalie explained that Grace had lived with her rich American boyfriend for many years before he passed away a year before. Unfortunately, her boyfriend’s children refused to take care of her since the couple had never been formally married. Her only relatives were Susan, a dog that she thought was her daughter, and her godson, David Hung, who lived in Taiwan. “You can see Grace is getting senile,” Natalie said to me. “She needs someone to look after her. Can you call David and see if he’ll take her in?”
I called the number, and his wife, Rita, answered the phone. I introduced myself, explained the reason I was calling, and asked if I could talk to David. “David went abroad on business, but I can speak for him…. Yes, we’re willing to take Grace in, but we will do so under one condition: She cannot bring her dog to our place because I’m very concerned about hygiene,” she answered emphatically.
When I passed on Rita’s response to Grace, she burst into tears. “Oh no, I’d rather die than leave my daughter behind and go to Taiwan alone.” Obviously, Grace was facing an awful predicament that had no solution in the foreseeable future. Although she was rich, there was no one she could count on to look after her in the twilight of her life. A lack of wisdom sadly prevented her from letting go of her attachment to her pet and finding a new owner for her in Miami, so that she could move to Taiwan and live with David’s family.
That is why I commented that it takes more than money for a person to lead a decent, enjoyable life, even in a gorgeous nursing home. It is important for us to constantly cultivate our blessings and wisdom by doing good deeds and eradicating the worries in our mind. It is also important to fully realize that nothing in this world lasts forever, and that any attachments in our mind can only lead to suffering and worries.
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