On Generosity
A couple who have had a fancy tourist vacation in Bhutan go to see an astrologer with their guide and driver. The astrologer tells the wife that her life will be cut short unless she becomes more generous. The wife immediately decides to double the tip that she’ll offer to the guide and driver. The couple gives a very generous tip of $500 each to the guide and driver.
As the couple leaves the hotel, they tell the manager that they are leaving Bhutan with a bad taste in their mouths. They are very upset to have their wonderful trip end this way. Why? Because the guide and driver did not say ‘thank you’ for the tips they received. The hotel manager talks to the guide and driver, who explain, quite accurately, that saying ‘thank you’ is not part of their culture. (In fact, saying thank you is not a custom in much of South Asia. Thanking someone is only appropriate if they have saved your life or otherwise gone way above and beyond the call of duty.)
Though offering thanks is not culturally expected, and though she had been instructed to become more generous, the wife cannot get beyond this lapse of courtesy. She still carries with her an expectation of reward and recognition for her generosity. Maybe the astrologer’s original prediction will still come to pass.
As the couple leaves the hotel, they tell the manager that they are leaving Bhutan with a bad taste in their mouths. They are very upset to have their wonderful trip end this way. Why? Because the guide and driver did not say ‘thank you’ for the tips they received. The hotel manager talks to the guide and driver, who explain, quite accurately, that saying ‘thank you’ is not part of their culture. (In fact, saying thank you is not a custom in much of South Asia. Thanking someone is only appropriate if they have saved your life or otherwise gone way above and beyond the call of duty.)
Though offering thanks is not culturally expected, and though she had been instructed to become more generous, the wife cannot get beyond this lapse of courtesy. She still carries with her an expectation of reward and recognition for her generosity. Maybe the astrologer’s original prediction will still come to pass.
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