My New Freind Aral

There is a small take out, 3 table eatin noodle house in an industrial/commercial business area near my office. It is under new management so I decided to stop in. It is a family run business, but primarily the dream of Aral to have a restaurant again. Before coming to Canada, He and his family were in Kuwait. They were there during the Iraq invasion. Previous to that, their homeland was in India. Aral has a wife and 2 beautiful daughters. I fell in love with them immediatly....the family I mean.

Aral is a stickler for homemade fresh. I asked if he would make me soup and his wife piped up..Aral makes the best soup. He said, what kind would you like. I said..surprise me, but vegetable only please. So he made me a Manchou Soup. Handcut veggies, ginger, onions. Very Very nice. So we struck up a deal. I pay $5 even and I call him 10 minutes before and when I arrive I have the most amazing lunch.

So I go daily and have the same thing. He went out and bought the perfect size soup bowl for me. So anyway, Aral said to me today, you know Don, whenever you are our first customer, we are always busy that day. Its happened a few times now. I said and today? Aral said...your the first and with that in came a rush of people. When he had served them, as they left he said...SEE! We laughed.

He told me that a christian lady came in and offered to pray for his new business. Aral said SURE. I can take all the prayer I can get. He told the lady he was catholic. She said, I used to be catholic, but now was free of the bondage. She arrive the next day with bondage of her own, as she handed over pages and pages of evangelical christian doctrine. Aral and I laughed at the obsurdity. Aral said, heres the thing Don. I know Jesus as Saviour. She knows Jesus as Saviour. Why is she here to convert me?

I find it astounding how, once we are given freedom in and through God that we ran back to bondage. Can we not just live in the spirit. Those people I know who do, enjoy a Godly freedom, and that freedom, I dare say, is also freedom from organized faith bondage.