Blogging for 2020: Miss Josey
I met Miss Josey Friedman while doing a 2 year Peace Corps stint somewhere back there in my past. Miss Josey was a community elder and deeply respected. Her village, one of many dotting the island, straddled a steep volcanic slope high in the mountains, lush with mango trees, bamboo groves and one rain-rutted ribbon road running through.
To me, Miss Josey lived closer to God than anyone I could imagine. I knew this for certain when one day a man asked her what she wanted for Christmas. She looked at him sharply, as if trying to comprehend his question and then responded simply and respectfully, “Me no ass de Lord for what no has and me gratsful for wha me does.” Translated: I don’t ask the Lord for what I don’t have and I’m grateful for what I do have.
This dear teacher of mine was somewhere in her late eighties when our paths crossed. She was nigh toothless, slightly stout but wiry at the same time. For years, she had carried around a goiter close to the size of her head. Her response when an outsider once had offered to help her get medical assistance to have it removed was, “De Lord gib me me bump. Me keep me bump.” She kept a tattered scarf expertly wrapped around both her head and her goiter. Year by year, the weight of the goiter had pulled her back out of alignment and caused her to walk lopsided. She never complained about her pain.
She lived in what was once a two-room dwelling; the smaller room down-slope had surrendered to the forces of gravity years earlier, lying in a tumbled pile of rotted boards. The remaining room sat precariously upon a few boulders, a foot or so off the ground, and contained a couple odd sticks of furniture and a few kitchen items. She had no screens or glass on her windows, only rotting shutters, closed at night with the hope of keeping out the dampness. She had no electricity. No plumbing. No social security. She walked a distance down the hill to a public spigot, carrying buckets of water back to her house, washed her meager laundry in the buckets she carried and hung the items on bushes to dry. She kept her best dress for church, walking the mile or so, to and fro, bible in hand. She cooked with locally-made charcoal arranged in the center of a rusty tire hub outside her front door. Her diet was mostly beans and rice and pumpkin, mangos and avocado pears when in season, and an occasional vegetable from a neighbor’s garden.
She had no need for a telephone. To talk to her one son who lived in England, all she had to do was give a message to a neighbor who, when talking to a relative in England, would mention that Miss Josey was looking to get a message to her son. Then shortly, the reverse path in operation, she would have a response. As Miss Josey saw it, life provided.
Once returning from a ferry trip from the sister island, I sat next to a couple of Boston lawyers. With locals sitting all around, they spoke loudly to me about the squalor they had seen during their taxi ride from the airport to the ferry dock. I bit my tongue—severely, as I thought of that shining God spirit, Miss Josey and her simple life. Clearly, they were blind.
When my Peace Corps stint ended, I passed out most of my possessions, taking my pillows, sheets and blanket to Miss Josey. She stood in her entryway, paintless door hanging lopsided, items in hand, repeating “praise de Lord,” eyes held skyward, heart wide open. I walked away reminding myself not to be smug, nor think that I was particularly generous. After all, Miss Josey had given me more than I could ever possibly imagine giving to her.
As I pondered the significance of why Miss Josey was being brought to my awareness after such a long time, I heard that her story needed to be shared, that if there were a time when understanding abundance and living from gratitude were essential, that time is NOW. A simple means to realize our abundance would be to make a list of all that we have and then compare it to what Miss Josey had.
It’s time for us all to count our blessings—count them every hour of every day. To be in the mindset of lack is unserving, even dangerous as we come face to face with the winds of change upon us. Thank God (Buddha, Great Spirit, Universe) for everything…EVERYTHING you have. To acknowledge and live from a place of gratitude and abundance indicates that you are living from greater awareness, from an open heart. The world needs all the open hearts possible at this time. Living right here right now, as Miss Josey did so well—living in and from God’s world.
Categories: Abundance, God's World, Winds of Change, Awareness, Gratitude
I absolutely love listening to [in this case reading] your island stories. While unique, they give us a path to reflect on our own experiences. I'm thinking about my "Miss Josey," and also how grateful I am for this entry. Cheers!
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This story is so warm and endearing. I love it for a million different reasons and then some. It has the same energy as your spirit story, Grandma's Flowers.
I love the part that reads, “De Lord gib me me bump. Me keep me bump.” Many things come to mind about that. One being she never complains about her pain but also that she knows how beautiful she is no matter what the body looks like.
Your story really made such an impact on me. Another sentence that stood out was, " After all, Miss Josey had given me more than I could ever possibly imagine giving to her."
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Oops. I hit send before I was done. Anyways, in regards to, " After all, Miss Josey had given me more than I could ever possibly imagine giving to her," it reminds me of me as a teacher in the classroom. My students teach me way more than I teach them. But, yet, I'm the one who gets paid.
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Yes, a true teacher is always learning from his students. A true student sees every incident in his life as a learning opportunity.
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Thank you for writing this blog. It touched my heart. In spite of everything and anything that is going on in life, it's all so simple. The picture you painted clearly conveyed Miss Josey's energy - a strong reference point to refer to. Choosing to see the joy and abundance in life, no matter what is going on outside of me. To be in gratitude instead of fear or lack completely shifts my perspective on everything. What a great awareness to hold as I start my day. Thank you Miss Josey, and thank you Ia!
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So that is why the woman on the hill (Josey) has been on my mind. Thank you for bringing it fully into my consciousness. With all the changes that have been happening it is easy for the ego to get in there and only see what I don't have any longer, instead of being grateful for what I do have and the abundance that surrounds me. Josey is a beautiful reminder of an open heart. Tears are brought to my eyes, thank you Ia for reminding me to open my heart. It seams lately it wants to slam shut more than ever, it is good to know it is not real.
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This past 1.5 yrs have been the hardest of my life. I feel every day is a constant struggle. This morning in particular was very hard for me to find the strength to get out of bed. I was feeling rather sorry for myself when I came upon this entry. Thank you so much for publishing the story of Ms. Josey. It brought me back to my roots. Reminding me of all that I already have, all I have is all I will ever need. Thank you Divine for all the wonderful gifts of love and support that surround me every day. Thank you Ia for showing me this light and reminding me that I already obtain the tools I need to endure anything that lies ahead. So simple yet so powerful. Again, thank you so much!
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And thank you Katrina and all who have brought Miss Josey's light into your own lives. Light is meant to be shared. Miss Josey shared her light with grace and dignity...and great humility.
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Incredibly powerful words. "Grace and dignity...and great humility." Words to live by.
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Since I first heard this story years ago, I've used it over and over and OVER whenever I "slip" for a moment and forget how blessed I am. Whenever I don't feel well, people frustrate me, or things just appear to be BAD all around me, I think of (how I remembered it) "God gives me de lump, I keeps me lump" and quickly realize my perceptions...I've been thinking of "her" quite often lately while pondering circumstances around me, no surprise you wrote about her - but thank you for giving Miss Josey a name that I can refer to now....
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Wow. Well....the timing was timely! I just read this blog after coming to work in fear of the consequences of having spoken my mind. "What if I lose my job!" "What if I get in big, big, trouble!" "What if people are mad at me!" "What if I get fired and cannot afford to live in my home!" And what is the source of all of this fear? I responded to an email with my candid thoughts on the subject. It wasn't so much what I said that was the problem, as it was the forum. The only reason I had access to that forum was because of my position at work. However, I used the email conversations to meet a personal need to connect, on a deep, intimate level, with others. I used my professional role to meet personal needs and then became extremely fearful of the consequences; loss of material things, loss of status, loss of being liked. My fear has robbed me of the joy of being alive. It seems that I use fear to keep myself miserable and small. Somehow, this story of Ms. Josey really helped me to let go and forget about it. Thank you all.
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Wait a minute. I forgot to say the bottom line of my thought. This place, these people understand. I frequently put myself out there to the world and then get disappointed and engage in self-recriminations when I am not "understood." I use that to maintain the false image that I am bad and stupid and can never get it right. Geez, Robbin, lighten up and see the light.
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Geez, Robbin, good self-assessment. It's what is being required of all of us right now...as the winds of change blow through ever more strongly. We must all lighten up--and see the light. There is no time for delay. And, the greatest gift we can give ourselves and the world is to lighten up--and see the light. To see "the light" we must focus our attention inward.
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For me, the most compelling part of Miss Josey's story is that she did not ask for what she did not have - she knew that she would always have all that she needed.
It is my undeniable experience that if I let go of the comfort agenda of my emotional body, what follows is about much than I could ever imagine.
There is even a certain sense of adventure bubbling up within me now after a recent emotional meltdown that literally forced me to let go of personal needs.
Miss Josey would understand this. I can hear her repeating, "Praise de Lord", "Praise de Lord", "Praise de Lord". I do too with deep gratitude.
Raemona
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Two thoughts on the light-filled Miss Josey story:
1. The Boston lawyers' response to the poverty they witnessed. How quick we are to perceive others who have less than ourselves materially as poor or people to be pitied. Judgment, judgment, judgment.
2.Your reminder to yourself not to be smug or feel generous because of your gift of sheets and pillows to Miss Josey. To give out of our abundance is so meaningless compared to Miss Josey's gift of a pure, grateful heart.
Thank you for the gift this story gave me today. Deb
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Greetings Deb...great to hear from you. Your response is full of insight and thoughtful. Thank you. Your first point is perfect for a blog, as well as your second point.
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