It's easy to understand why a starving cat would hiss and spit to keep other cats away from a morsel of food in a trash can, but it's harder to understand why someone would act selfishly in the face of abundance. Yet this was the scenario unfolding before me.
“These are mine,” one grandchild shouted. “I’m using them to build a tower.”
“No, they’re mine,” the other said, snatching the log from her sister’s hand. “I need them to build a bridge.” A tug of war ensued, and I stepped in to mediate.
“Girls, these logs aren’t yours. They belong to Gigi, and I'm sharing them with you. If you want to play with them, you’re going to have to work out a way to share with each other. If you fight again, I’m going to put them back into the attic.”
I shake my head at my grandchildren’s squabbles, yet I am often guilty of the same crime—selfishness in the face of abundance. Apparently it’s a sin that goes back to Bible times. The book of Jonah describes an ancient version of the Lincoln Log scene.
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