"Our house was not very big, but it had wide open doors. I don't think that many guests who came to the Beje ever realized what a struggle it was to make both ends meet. As Mother said, "We must turn every penny twice before we spend it."
We didn't feel that we were poor, however, and indeed we weren't. The words "we can't afford it" were not a part of our thinking, because as children we knew something about the status of family finances, and didn't ask for what we knew was impossible.
Many lonesome people found a place with us, where there was music, humor, interesting conversations, and always room for one more at the oval dinner table. Oh, it's true, the soup may have been a bit watery when too many unexpected guests came, but it didn't really matter."
Ecclesiastes 11:1-2 - Cast your bread upon the waters, for you will find it after many days.
Give a serving to seven, and also to eight, for you do not know what evil will be on the earth.(NKJV)
One of my mother's sisters (six siblings) says, "We always got whatever we wanted when we were growing up. Of course, we knew what to want." We've tried to raise ours the same way and it seems to have mostly worked out. :) It's all about attitude and perspective, isn't it?
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