No Free Lunch

There is a parable about a king who ordered his wise men to condense all human wisdom into a small, manageable amount of print.

The men returned after twelve years with twelve volumes. "It is too large," protested the king. "Condense it further." So the wise man went out again and returned in a year with one large volume. "It's still too large," objected the king.

They went out again, only to return the following day with a single statement written on a slip of paper – all the great wisdom of the world in one line: "There is no free lunch."

While this greatly oversimplifies all human wisdom, there does seem to be an unfailing law of sowing and reaping in life. We get out of anything just about what we put into it. There is no free lunch. This is the now age old adage. Everything of quality costs something. It is just a question of how the price is paid, at what time the money changes hands, and who pays the costs of the service.

This is especially true in the Christian life. "Seek and ye shall Find," we are told.

And this is true at my new job. I have had to pay for lunch....everyday since I got here.

While the wise men of the story and the wise of the world are right, in general, for me, there was a time when I received free lunch each day at work. One could argue that is was not free, because if I didn't work on the case of the client providing the lunch, I was not invited. But I know I would have worked on the case anyway, and so, for me, it was free. I enjoyed a free lunch, and many of them at that.

There are many free lunches. They arise every time a person doubles his productivity. If you work for three hours in the morning to produce lunch, and then double your efficiency to produce two lunches for the same amount of work, you have got a free lunch.

It really happens a lot. You receive a gift. A bonus. That something extra or something special that someone does for you that you know and they know they did not have to do or was not expected.

Today, living in a world where everyone is always trying to get our money away from us, always wanting to charge more than the service or product is really worth, it is so special and satisfying and refreshing, when someone wants to go that extra mile, completely out of their way, to extend to us, a free lunch.

There are those who do not recognize a free lunch when it comes their way. It reminds me of the idea of whether the glass is half empty or half full. Some just always see the cost of something.

But each time someone offers to me their love, their friendship, their support, their encouragement, or even just a place at their table, I recognize it, appreciate it, and count it as a blessing.

Be well....Ric