The chorus of Burt Bacharach song “What the world needs now, is love sweet love” comes to mind as I sit here and think about things that has happened to me through out my life.
I’ve had a good life, however, a troubled road with obstacles always in my way. I was overcome with grief when my brother died of a drug overdose in 1999. Not that I didn’t expect it to happen, but how it turned out. People looked down on him because of his drug use. Although, ignoring the fact that he wasn’t hurting anyone besides himself.
After his death, I began looking at people in a different light. It was almost a need to confirm that all seen evilness, like drugs, smoking and drinking, is not the greatest evilness of all. It took me 32 years to come to the resolution that every day people who claim themselves virtuous in every way can, in fact , be worse than the homeless on the street or a drug addict looking for his next fix.
For example, I have a recent experience with wills and the greediness that instills our souls when someone is nearing death. In fact, it happened to my father who has looked after my grandmother for over 20 years. My father is 69 years old and in the 32 years that I have known him, he’s never said a bad word about anyone. He’s overcome a lot of obstacles and one being my brother’s death and his pursuit to help him find his way.
He cultivated my grandmother’s land, fought legally for what was rightfully her land, as well, took her meals to her each and every day. He’s a good man with a heart of gold. In turn, he was promised her land once she dies. He lives about 300 feet from her and the land under his house, shed and parking belongs to her.
The past two years, my parents have been unable to stay in their home due to Road Salt contamination and have been living with my brother or myself, or at a local motel in their hometown. It’s a hefty lawsuit which is a whole other story.
This year, they decided to continue living in their home and decided to dig a well into the woods, which is also my grandmother’s land. Interestingly enough, my grandmother has been in a nursing home under the care of my aunt in Oakville Ontario. Over 1200 miles where her home is and her son!
They decided to take a trip to her hometown after my grandmother was gravely ill and made a miraculous recovery (she’s 101). During this trip, my grandmother let it be known that she was giving land and home to my aunt and there was no discussion about it. My father felt rejected and humiliated. Not because of the land, but because of the rejection and deception. My mother claims that she often sees him thinking very hard and knows that the hurt runs much deeper than the land.
Now, one can look at this situation in one of two ways; the ultimate deception of my grandmother or ultimate greed of my Aunt. Actually one can summarize that it can be both. But I question this as I see my father so upset. Why are our actions geared towards money, land or material items rather than the power family togetherness?
Here is my Aunt; a faithful church attendee who hosts bible readings at her home who is ultimately choosing material things over family values. Here is my grandmother, who has promised something to my father who would continue to cultivate the land and keep it as his own, rejecting him for God knows why.
I ask you, is the druggie on the street worse than this individual? Is the homeless guy we refuse to give money to less virtuous? I should say not. The druggies are supporting a habit that is awful, despicable and evil enough to rule their whole existence! The homeless guy is a person with a lack of confidence to make it in life who needs someone to help him find his way should he choose that route.
By my aunt, the church going, live by the bible person who is respected and honored for her good will and virtuous persona. But her actions towards her family; her secret life is never seen. Why does everyone look at her with blind eyes?
I ask you now. Where is the love that God wants us to feel? Where is the hope that family will always stand behind us? Why does God allow greed to overpower our sense of togetherness in the meantime we reject those less unfortunate. Where is it written that a person who has lost their way is less virtuous than those who attend church weekly but deceives others because of their greed?
I want to understand this phenomenon for things over family.
I was in Vancouver the other day. It has to be the capital of Canada for druggies and homeless people as the streets were swarmed with them after 11 o’clock. An older gentleman wanted me to buy a small pencil drawing of some killer whales because he was so hungry. I immediately said no as I knew where the money was going. However, I told him to wait and raced over to the 7 eleven on Robson and bought that man a hot dog and milk. I returned and he thanked me but informed me that I couldn’t receive his picture, and I responded that I didn’t want it. He returned about three hours later, only to ask me again about buying the picture. He was so stoned, I reminded him that I gave him food a while ago, but he didn’t remember. I told him that I know that God is watching over him and he’ll remember me in time. I left him and wished him luck. This does not make me virtuous in anyway, however, I felt so good to love my fellow man.
What the world needs now is definitely love, sweet love.
(Original Airdate: 11/29/05) When you imagine receiving an inheritance, you might dream that all your financial problems would be solved. But sometimes, the money is more trouble than it's worth. Eighty-four-year-old Aileen inherited a 2,000-acre farm after her husband died. But is her granddaughter, Amber, jumping the gun by wanting her mother's name on the title now? Then, Tracy says her 19-year-old son, Mark, changed when he came into a large inheritance this year after his dad passed away. She says the money wasn't what changed her son, but his long-lost friend, Brandon. Talk about the show here. 
