Trashy Talk!

The old adage, "Do as I say not as I do" came to mind as I sat alongside a busy highway. Cars, motorcycles and bicycles jockeyed for the right of way, in a rush to get nowhere fast. Pedestrians kept a close eye on the traffic as some impatient drivers maneuvered their respective mode of transport off the highway endangering children. It always seems that there is never a traffic enforcer present when one needs one.

Blame it on the rain

It was drizzling rain as I waited for a taxi with my son. Even a jeepney would do. The clouds were threatening heavy rain, as my son pointed to the sky and said, "Moon?" He was squirming in my arms, excited to see the cars whizzing by.

We had just showered after the dismal task of sorting the trash into separate bags. The garbage people had inspected the bags by order of the local barangay captain, a known hypocrite, and the men gave me the thumbs up, as if to say, "Thanks - good job." The truck had lurched forward and then stalled. The engine roared to life again and the crew was off to the next house.

As we sat, the truck pulled onto the highway where multiple bags, cardboard boxes and assorted throwaways lie in an increasingly high, stinking heap. Three workers began to haphazardly throw everything into the idling truck from the pavement as we continued to watch.

"You didn't sort it properly!" one worked yelled at another.

"Because it's raining harder," another replied.

And it was. I had opened my flimsy umbrella, retrieved from my handbag, but the wind had also picked up and blew occasional droplets into our faces. Its freshness was ruined by the smell of garbage; we pulled up our masks.

Catching a break

A friend occasioned by and saw us waiting for transportation, pulled over, and gave us a lift into town, just as the rain abated.

Twenty minutes later the garbage truck passed us as we were exiting a DYI store. Arlene, my friend, who was driving and had mercifully picked us up, suddenly bleated, "I threw my backup cell phone in the trash!"

"How in the...what? How did that happen?" I asked. She could be rather rash, hair-brained, and/or impetuous dependent on her mood. But she was a solid friend.

She sped the car up to catch the lumbering garbage truck but traffic only allowed us to get so far, and thankfully in view of the truck's destination. Full to the brim, and with bits and pieces of trash falling off, we surmised it was headed for the dump, wherever that was.

Oh, no you didn't!

We caught up with the old cantankerous, smoke-belching garbage truck as the crew was unloading the mounds of trash. They were cursing like drunken sailors at port call, oblivious to our presence. We waited for the little bit of dust that had been unaffected by the rain to settle before we alit from the vehicle.

As we watched, the workers began dumping all of the trash in one huge pile! What the heck?! Glass and plastic bottles, foods, and paper and cardboard, were all back together again!

We whipped out our smartphones like Old West gunfighters and began shooting videos. No, we weren't going to turn them in and adversely affect their families or incomes, but we had other plans: we would stop sorting our trash. If confronted, we'd show the complainers what they had done.

The leader of the crew doused the pile with kerosene and lit a large fire. We left after capturing some more video.

Trashy Talk

Our tongues are deceitful because the words they speak come from our hearts. Jeremiah tells us: "The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?" (Jeremiah 17:9, NIV).

We don't talk with purity. Our intentions are not always honorable. Our speech is not always beneficial or true. But it should be out of an abundance of love. When we give up all of our plans and self to God, we will experience the Holy Spirit working in our unqualified lives. God has no bias - He does not look down on the poor. In fact, He favors the poor and gives wisdom and understanding to all those who diligently seek it.

Let's cut out the trashy talk and mean what we say. Let's be examples to others of how a cleansed heart can glorify God and positively influence those around us. Any other speech is like trash, fit only for burning.