Article January 1, 2000 ISSUE

Making a living

Felipe Pinheiro de Freitas—São Paulo, Brazil

I work full-time in a small firm, doing jobs in the office and outside. I go to the bank, the post office, and make photocopies. I walk a lot — all day long. At night I go to school. I'm in the eighth grade.

Some time ago, when my dad passed away suddenly, I was very grateful to find this job, which is near my house and school. I'm an only child and my mother is unemployed, so my salary is important to pay our expenses.

Sometimes I think how good it would be if I had a father to take care of us — my mother and me. But then I try to remember that I do have a Father-Mother who takes care of us all the time. Then I feel relieved. What I learn about God in Sunday School is very important to me. I started going when I was 9 years old, with a friend of mine. Our parents don't go to church. We go on our own.

An idea from Science and Health that always helps me when I'm worried about our bills is: “Soul has infinite resources with which to bless mankind, and happiness would be more readily attained and would be more secure in our keeping, if sought in Soul” (p. 60). Soul is a synonym for God, like Love and Mind. And I've learned you can substitute one synonym for another. So I think, “Mind has infinite resources to bless mankind. That's why I have all the ideas I need. Love has infinite resources, so I don't lack love or patience or calm.”

This last thought helps me on the job, because my boss is pretty nervous and screams at the employees a lot. There's a very big temptation to get mad at her and to mouth off. So then I try not to be critical, and think that God loves her, too — the way He loves everybody.

It's very good to be able to talk to the Sunday School teachers, to exchange ideas about the problems I'm facing, to know how to think and how to pray to solve them.

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