Suggest a Remedy

In my English class we have been reading short stories by Jhumpa Lahiri. As I was writing my essay on one of her stories I noticed that in Interpreter of Maladies Mrs. Das is the basic portrayal of humanity. We make our mistakes, whether intentionally or unintentionally, and yet too often we don’t take responsibility for our actions. Now, I think every person who reads the story has, at some point in the story, unwittingly identified with Mrs. Das, whether sympathizing with her “dull” life, apathetic words, or life choices. The interesting thing though when she reveals her actions to Mr. Kapasi, he pinpoints her feelings of guilt and not pain. Humanity feels the pangs of guilt and tries to disown them or describe it as pain.

When it comes to the guilt Mrs. Das feels I realized it is not because of her actions. I don’t think she regrets what she did, rather she regrets what came out of it. If she really regretted the affair I think she would have confessed it to her husband. Yet it took her eight years to finally confess it to someone and when she did it was because she thought he could “suggest some kind of remedy.” Bobbie’s presence was a continual reminder to her of her affair and she probably thinks that if she could do it over again she would have stopped herself from getting pregnant rather than not having the affair at all. It reminds me of humanity. We sin and are very protective of our sin. We would rather cover up our sin and mistakes than expose them for what they are. We do not want anybody to point out our sin and we become quite defensive of it. I think this portrays humanity at its finest (without God).

What do you think?

Am I content?

The Lord has been really pressing on my heart lately to be content. I really viewed myself as content in about everything, but was I really? Honestly, looking at myself right now I see my heart and it yearns for something indescribable yet something so temporary. I am continually being drawn to my own emotions and not the will of God. The Lord has been laying on my heart Proverbs 4:23 "Keep your heart with all diligence for out of it spring the issues of life." The issues of life? It's not just little things, but outcomes. If I do not keep my heart in line with God's word then I could affect not just myself, but the lives of those around me, whether family, friends, future spouse, future children and grandchildren. How devastating could the decision I make today be tomorrow or in the years to come? This is such a great burden. Am I content to satisfy the temporary without regards to the long-term affect? The Lord knows my heart and sees my desires even when I feel like they are not seen. There are days when I feel extremely torn between what my soul desires and what my flesh desires. They don't line up and I want my fleshly desires fulfilled. Yet the Lord reminds me of what my soul longs for and that when I delight myself in Him, He will give me the desires of my heart. I am learning what Colossians 3:2 means. "Set your minds on the things that are above, not on things that are on earth."