Tuesday, November 07, 2006

Do I have to feel compassion for the Sloth?

I walked into a restaurant this evening, and there in front of me was the Sloth and his wife. I was in no mood to make small talk with him; I turned around and walked out and went somewhere else.

The Sloth and I both received paychecks from the same employer for about a year and a half. That is a somewhat awkward but certainly more technically correct statement than to write that he and I worked together, since the Sloth didn't work much at all. Instead he divided most of his work day among sleeping on a sofa in the break room, wandering aimlessly around the building, looking up worshipfully at the middle manager who served as his patron and protector and complaining that he shouldn't be working at all but instead should 'have an office where people bring me stuff and I sign off on it.'

The Sloth left behind a pile of half-finished projects – some of them overdue by more than a year – which I then had to finish up.

So now I ask myself, how do I feel a buddha's compassion for the Sloth?

I guess if they called me and said he needed a kidney and I was the only match on earth I might feel enough compassion for him to give one. Of course, if he survived it would mean that a whole lifetime of coworkers would have to run around behind him cleaning up his messes while he conspired to just 'sign off on stuff.'

Can I feel compassion for him without having to actually like him? Can I feel compassion for him and still think he's an annoying twerp? 'Cause that would sure make it a lot easier.

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