I'm a follower of the masses. For fun, and deliberately of course. I just wanted to know why every 2nd anaesthetic nurse is telling me to visit the CostCo. at Auburn that opened last week. A friend from Bible Study group said the same thing. It's like Disneyland for adults, the Ikea equivalent for the family-minded.
It was hard just parking, evening on a Friday evening (I thought others would have better places to go than this. There was a lot of agitation, urgency and bated breaths as I joined the queue for membership. The helpers, ushers and membership crew, were all very ordinary people, but all had the common purpose of ushering the masses up a ramp to material heaven. They were genuinely happy, helpful, and probably satisfied with their hardwork and achievements for the common good.
I did not even blink, like I sometimes to when donating to charities in shopping centres, when I paid $AUD60 (valuable dollars) for a Gold-Membership. I wanted to see what people got upto inside that massive warehouse. I first saw families, with trolleys, boxes, squatting and crowding around the cheap eat outlets. (good idea from Ikea) Then I was pushed along the designated flow of new masses "in" to the warehouse.
It was pretty massive. The loft was even higher than a typical Ikea complex. I only had time to venture through electronics and confectionery sections. All I wanted to find were Almond Rocas and Reeses, one a childhood favourite and the latter a late acquired taste in my 24th year of life. My mother would use to lug these lollies 1000 of miles from her San Francisco trips. Well, even with the Traffic CostCo was within 20min from work. I know there's a CostCo in Melbourne too!
At the checkout, people with huge name tags, very friendly, ordinary and unintimidating, all cheerily ushering masses with massive trolleys through a speedy checkout system. 2 servers at each checkout made such a difference. I got weird looks for purchasing so few items (a couple fo bags of confectionery). The ladies behind me had 3 cartoons of instant noodles that I wished I had picked up. Ahhh, the neighbour-envy effect.
Bigger, Cheaper, More, Easier, Tastier - just Bigger. They've really picked the right time and place to titillate our appetites.
It was worth my $60 just to have a look. But in my nature I'm happy with less. I think
often it's more. Godliness with contentment is great gain, Paul said that to Timothy and I have to say this to myself and others. More is always less, in all spheres of living, and not just economics. The more we have the less satisfied we are - if it's the material we find our contentment in and not the Giver of the gifts or the Maker of the materials from Whom we seek our joy and satisfaction. At my best moments, I sweetly and satisfying savour the never failing water of life that comes through a living relationship with God through HIs Son Jesus. So satisfying is this good, that a little refreshes and a little more enrichs. And I don't tend to get bored of it ever. It obeys the Law of Increasing Returns. "To those who have, more will be given, but to those who do not have, even the little that they have will be taken away." Matthew 25.
Don't get me wrong, I need Almond Rocas and Reeses! But I have found something or someone, even more delicious and satisfying.
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