Knowing what's important

On Wednesday night, the kids rode their bikes down to the train bridge after dinner. As Chava and I were coming up the hill toward home, we passed a man and a woman who, by the look of their ravaged faces, were likely alcoholics or drug addicts. The woman looked like she might be missing her teeth; her mouth had that collapsed, unhappy look to it. As they walked past, Chava asked me, "Why that lady so sad, Mama?" I told her I didn't know why she was sad. Chavie thought about it a minute and said, "Her t.v. broke, Mama?" I'm glad she still thinks that would be about the saddest thing imaginable.