Turning trash into something new

"Don't forget to take the recyclables out," Rita called out to her husband, David. The man begrudged the job, but he did it anyway. "All right," he grumbled in a surly voice. He resented having to put the can full of papers, plastics and other outworn materials into a separate container to make into something else. The junk, as he perceived it, was old, dirty and useless. It had already served its purpose so why try to salvage it?

Rita believed in doing the right thing, and she was used to David's sour attitude concerning salvaging the old and outworn. For some reason, this time, she fell into deep contemplation, after hearing David's griping. The idea of turning the old and useless into a jewel, a home or becoming a replacement part to a car, for someone who couldn't otherwise own a vehicle, excited her. Rita was beginning to gain a new perspective, herself.

As Rita mulled the prospect of old and useless things becoming useful and beautiful again, the idea struck her as awesome. People just had to take the trouble to realize the benefits of saving what is considered trash to be turned into something new. Rita's mind became overrun with questions and discoveries about making trash into something good and desirable. She recognized that the concept contained a spiritual realm, as well.

It depends on what we perceive as being trash. The term could be used to describe people that do not fit our mold of how people should be, and the quality of their actions. Often conditions such as alcoholism, abuse of others, cheating on a mate, refusing to support the family, and living in unnecessary filth are present. Rita tossed the different aspects of garbage or trash around in her head as it pertained to people, about her God and her faith in her what God, through Jesus, could do. She remembered that she didn't recall instances in Scripture where Jesus turned individuals away because of the bad, or evil things they did. Instead, He talked with them, offered forgiveness and tried to turn them away from their wrongful ways and toward doing the right things. In other words the Holy One recycled their personalities and make-up and miraculously turned them into something new--just as the garbage truck rolls toward the recycling center to dump out the trash and make it into a useful treasure. Regardless of how dirty, smelly, tarnished or broken, an object appears, there is hope--hope that the rubbish can came out clean, shiny, useful and perhaps even beautiful. We are, indeed fortunate to have the opportunity to help build our world by refusing to be wasteful and unconcerned. In Rita's mind, taking out the recyclables should not be a chore, but a privilege. Now, if she could only convince David.

Rita couldn't let the precept go without prying farther into the awareness that starting all over with our behavior, or by helping to make the world a cleaner more desirable place, was worth pursuing. She was especially drawn toward the spiritual aspect of turning trash into something new. Rita thought of Easter, and the newness of flowers, trees and grass. God turns the old dried-up leaves, broken twigs and all of nature into new and beautifully fresh plants. We are included when Scripture speaks of our transformation into the new. 2 Corinthians 5-17 reads, "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature and old things are passed away, behold, all things are become new." We can be a new creation so no one can be considered trash. We all are able to change our ways and allow Jesus to take away our tarnish, cracked paint, unfitting language and all the things that have kept our minds and hearts living in the refuse heap. Whether we like taking out the garbage/recyclables or not, we can use the task, to reach inside ourselves and see how we measure up. We need to ask if we're going to be constantly renewed in Christ or will we remain in the junk pile? We, ourselves determine if our days are sunny or cloudy, or clean or dirty.

Ellen Shuck holds degrees in psychology, religious education and spiritual direction. She is the author of the book, "Wisdom for the Journey."