The god stealer
I was cleaning my room and that included my cabinets. I have boxed some of the books I am not currently reading before to lessen my clutter and I thought it was just safely placed in my closed cabinets. As I was cleaning, I decided to move the box at the end of my cabinet. I don’t usually move it since I would just wipe the outer portion where it gets dusty. I was so shocked to find that box eaten by termites… Ayyy!!! They were moving still feeding on my books I had to get a huge plastic basin where I could place them so I could move them downstairs while I clean the cabinet to make sure that they have not eaten the woods.
My books! My books! They are books by Merton, St. Ignatius, Pope John Paul, St. Therese, Scott M. Peck…they were mostly books on spirituality but there were also books on poetry and one local book which is a collection of short stories of F. Sionil Jose which I bought a long time ago, I think long before he became a national artist. The book was “The god stealer and other stories.”
I was looking at it with the cover still intact but the inside pretty much eaten by the termites. I was rushing in cleaning up the termites’ mess but at the back of my mind I was thinking about the book title “the god stealer” and thinking further that these termites are God stealer! They have devoured some of my best books!
My sister-in-law and later my friend were kidding me that they were spiritual termites. I could only smile a little when I heard them. I still feel bad. It was really a waste that I wasn’t even able to share them with others. I have lent some of my books to friends and officemates but I found out that they are not really keen on the books that I read.
My friend was consoling me that they were just things. Actually they are not really just things – physically they are but their contents are not. But yes I somehow feel consoled… consoled not because they are just things but consoled that I have read them and though they are gone, I believe that their ideas and reflections are somehow a part of me also. So the termites maybe god stealers but they haven’t really stolen GOD.
My books! My books! They are books by Merton, St. Ignatius, Pope John Paul, St. Therese, Scott M. Peck…they were mostly books on spirituality but there were also books on poetry and one local book which is a collection of short stories of F. Sionil Jose which I bought a long time ago, I think long before he became a national artist. The book was “The god stealer and other stories.”
I was looking at it with the cover still intact but the inside pretty much eaten by the termites. I was rushing in cleaning up the termites’ mess but at the back of my mind I was thinking about the book title “the god stealer” and thinking further that these termites are God stealer! They have devoured some of my best books!
My sister-in-law and later my friend were kidding me that they were spiritual termites. I could only smile a little when I heard them. I still feel bad. It was really a waste that I wasn’t even able to share them with others. I have lent some of my books to friends and officemates but I found out that they are not really keen on the books that I read.
My friend was consoling me that they were just things. Actually they are not really just things – physically they are but their contents are not. But yes I somehow feel consoled… consoled not because they are just things but consoled that I have read them and though they are gone, I believe that their ideas and reflections are somehow a part of me also. So the termites maybe god stealers but they haven’t really stolen GOD.
posted by elizabeth | 10:17 PM
1 Comments:
i also had a similar experience a long time ago and it included a photo book with precious photos in it.
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