Do they get it?

The guy who cooks the best fried rice in my street is Vietnamese.

I have been told for so long that the guy, who makes my favorite fried rice in my soi, is from Viet Nam.  I never got it until the past week.  My hesitation has been that he always speaks Thai and speaks it so well, or at least to my ear.  I had never heard him speak Vietnamese and, then recently, I saw him wearing his Vietnamese hat, and it hit me - he is Vietnamese.  

The guy has always been so friendly to me, calling me "Fried Rice Ham", which is my classic, weekly order.  Being sure now he is from Viet Nam, our casual friendship in the street scene has reached new heights.  I finally got it and, as a result, a whole new friendship opened up in My Bangkok.    

In the last week, I shared a message from Pope Francis where he stresses the role of the laity.  A person at church asked me - Is that us?  He never got it, until I assured the person that the Pope was talking to him.  Once he got it, he realised for the first time in his life something important about who he is.  It was a delight to see the excitement in his face. 

Do we really get who we are and the possibilities of who we are?  Once we do, we too can know new excitement, lighting up as we see a new vision of who we are and a whole vista of new options in life.