Untukmu Para Pengunjung

I was reading the Ten Commandments this morning, and the last one struck me - about not coveting/not being jealous. Yesterday we walked to the supermarket at lunchtime. The shelves are pretty much empty, but we did find some beans, corn and peaches, so we brought them to the checkout counter. The woman who was packing our bags placed a loaf of bread in our bag and quietly said to the till manager "just charge them $100,000." We haven't seen bread in shops for months! It was a real treat, and $100,000 for a loaf is a steal! When we got back to work, everyone was asking about the loaf. Some were congratulating us on our success. The 3 ladies I work with in my building were angry because they had been to that same shop and did not get any bread. They were jealous, and refused to speak to me for the rest of the afternoon. A loaf of bread. If I'm honest I'll admit that there are some days when I'm jealous of my friends who are actually making/saving money, driving cars, enjoying electricity every day, embarking on careers and families, etc. Jealousy is not good - it tears us apart rather than bringing us together. I think that's why it makes a nice 10th commandment. I guess we all have a lot to learn about just being content with what we have, instead of always wanting what others have.