A Wave From A Stranger

All the brethren greet you. Greet one another with a holy kiss. The salutation with my own hand…1 Corinthians 16:20-21

I was told an interesting story last week that I can’t seem to get out of my head. I thought I’d share it with you and see what happens. It may seem silly to some, but others may find a strange sense of hope at the end. If not, you can’t say I didn’t try.

The tale is of a young boy who was encountered on a recent trip to Amsterdam…

One afternoon, a boat full of tourists sailed through the city centre. They basked in the end of summer atmosphere, complimented by the surrounding architecture. As one of the the city’s many bridges drew closer, they were greeted by an extremely happy lad who shouted – jumped and waved at them from above. His energy was so contagious that everyone responded with equal excitement. They all went under the bridge laughing.

When approaching the next bridge, they were surprised to find the same boy, reappearing like a Dutch Batman to greet them again with unfaded enthusiasm. Their response was even louder this time. This routine carried on for nearly a dozen bridges. The boy had jumped and ran endlessly to give these tourists some nice pictures and a funny story to take home.

As the boat finally docked at the tour’s end, who do you think was their to wish them all well? The boy’s intentions were now a bit clearer as he waved good-bye with one hand and held out the other like a five-fingered cup. While his chest still heaved from the multi-bridge marathon, the boaters repaid is efforts with whatever currency was found in their world-traveling pockets. It was given gladly.

So was this boy an ingenious entrepreneur or just another greedy capitalist? I’ll let you decide that one*. Whatever the verdict, here are a few things I got from this post-modern fable.

• People will always enjoy paying others who make them feel good about it.
• We are all capable of amazingly creative things under oppressive circumstances.
• God has created us to run this uncertain race with joy so others can be encouraged.What did the ‘poor’ little boy say to you?

  (Waving Goodbye)
  Brandon and Pamela
  www.freedomhouse.org.uk

*Does your perception of the story alter in any way if I say the word gypsy?