Mma Ramotswe

I'm reading a book called The Miracle at Speedy Motors. It takes place in Africa and the main character is Mma Ramotswe, who is a lady detective. I think she is very insightful.

In the story a big rain comes and she has left on an errand and comes back and finds out that her husband has left his business to go help someone, one of his apprentices is also gone with her secretary somewhere and the person left in charge had also left during the day, but was back.

She sighs (Mma Ramotswe). It was no use thinking about it and getting hot under the collar because whatever she said she would never be able to change the way people were. Of course she believed in the possibility of change; she had seen many who had become better people from a single experience or from the example of another, but that change was in the big matters, change in the outlook of the heart. It was not change in the little things of life, such as leaving the business unattended--those were things which never changed.

Then the apprentice points out the flying ants that come out after a good rain and she remembers as a child grabbing the ants out of the air and eating them with their peanut-butter flavor. She tells her apprentice to go on and catch some and about that time birds appear also eating the ants and the apprentice and her look at each other and smile.

What does it matter, she thought, if businesses are left unattended, if people are not always as we want them to be; we need the time just to be human, to enjoy something like: a boy chasing ants, a dry land drinking at last, birds in the sky, a rainbow.

I need to take this to heart. I think my life would be a lot easier if I didn't try and change the world to my way of thinking and just enjoy life and what it brings.