by Nomad
But For the Grace of God
Throughout my childhood, I grew up hearing from my mother this phrase: "There, but for the grace of God, go I."This was drummed into my head at the earliest age, not as some kind of arrogant boast of divine favoritism. It was instead a reminder never to take things for granted. No man, no woman or child should ever feel exempt from misfortune.
The vagary of life, sudden changes in circumstance, is the one things we all share. A business shuts down, an accident or illness, a poor choice, a hundred things beyond our control. (Add to that the temptations of drugs and alcohol and the instant relief of from boredom, stress or emotional pain.)
All of these things, whether we choose to acknowledge it or not, are a part of our common humanity. Today, it might be that person who is begging on the street, living in their car or suffering from an addiction, but never ever think it could not be you or I in that situation tomorrow.
That was the greatest lesson my parents learned from the Great Depression.
