No Job Too Small

When Kokun Chacha first came to America from India, at age 24, he started working in the kitchen of a restaurant to earn some money; it was the only way he could afford to go to school the following year. He was hesitant to write home to his father to tell him that he was working in a ‘very small job’. But his father wrote back, “there’s no job too small; as long as you’re earning money in the right way, there’s nothing wrong with it.” Afterall, the Prophets lead the life of shepherds, he added.Kokun chacha continues to heed his father’s advice almost half a century later. I used to notice that at Sunday School, when it was time to lay the carpets to pray in the school cafeteria, Kokun chacha would be the first person clearing the space to get it ready; after prayers, as everyone else would rush to their next Sunday activity, there was Kokun chacha rolling up the carpets, putting away the chairs, emptying the coffee percolators, and all the other ‘very small jobs’ that were essential.He was asked to serve on the Board of Directors for the Sunday School. But he declined. He said many want to serve in that roll; few want to do the more tedious work.“My theory is, if people are doing 99 units of work; there’s still one unit left. I’ll do that. Otherwise we can’t get the job done.”Day 6 Wisdom 6: No job too small.