God, You Could Have Told Me

"So God, you could have told me not to make the trip to Vietnam and saved me $3400. I specifically asked you if I should go. You didn't say anything so I used my best judgment. Why didn't you warn me that I'd want to come back so soon?

"You wouldn't have listened."

"You could have shouted, spoken more clearly. I wouldn't have gone if you told me not to," I replied.

And God said, "So tell me what you have learned from the whole thing."

I took a long time to think about it. You know God doesn't mind if you take your time in answering Him. "Well, I learned that I'd rather be cold with friends and family than warm with strangers. I learned that it's not my job to change the world or even to make sure that Vietnamese kids learn English. I learned that I'll never be happy living somewhere by myself and that teaching English isn't my vocation. I'd rather play my fiddle than learn another language."

"What else did you get out of your trip?" God pressed on.

"Well, I feel that a burden has been lifted. I don't feel like I have to live somewhere else to be happy. I have more than I need right here at home. I realize that I've been living for some future thing and not enjoying what I have right in the present, every day. I always think that the next thing is better than the current one."

And God spoke to me one more time, "Sometimes you just have to go out and find out for yourself. I can't save you from this by telling you what to do. That's why you are here on this planet, to have experiences so you can learn. Take a deep breath grasshopper, the fire of suffering becomes the light of consciousness, to quote a favorite teacher of mine."

Ain't it a hoot that you can talk to God and she talks back?