A Small Room at the Museum

A man decided to visit the local museum in his town. He walked through the museum, viewing the exhibits. In one of the galleries of exhibits, he noticed a small room off to the side that he had never noticed before. Over the passageway into the room was the inscription, “Useful Objects You Can Use to Build Your Life…To Build a Better World.” The man was somewhat intrigued by that inscription and entered this room to see what it held.

As he entered the small room, he noticed just inside the entrance was a small information board upright on a stand. He walked over the information board. Near the top right was a photograph of a young African boy of maybe 11 or 12 years old. He had bright, expressive eyes and emanated a sure sense of confidence about himself.

The text read, “This exhibit is dedicated to the fierce spirit and the notable accomplishments of Nkosi Johnson, a young South African boy who became one of the most eloquent spokesman for those afflicted with AIDS. Himself a victim of AIDS, he accomplished more in his brief life than most of us will ever accomplish. He wrote, ‘Do all you can, with what you have, in the time you have, in the place you are.’ Our world is an infinitely richer place by the fact that he lived. Our world is an infinitely poorer place by the fact that he died at the age of 12, of AIDS. We will never know what he might have accomplished had he been granted a full life. We dedicate this exhibit to this extraordinary young man.”

The man studied the face of this young boy, a face which implied wonderful strength in the boy and at the same time, a sense that the boy was both vulnerable and fragile.

He turned his attention to the room about him. There was nothing on the walls. In the center of the room, he saw just a plain glass case containing what appeared to be rather ordinary objects, each of which was individually labeled. On the outside of the case, by each object, was a button one could push to get more information about that object.

The first object was a pen, such as one would find in one’s desk. The man pushed the button. A voice came out of the speaker. “I am a pen. I aspire to be more than I am. I aspire to a means for mankind to be able to explore this extraordinary world, to be the means to seek truth, to enable men and women to express the highest ideals to which mankind can aspire to embody and to express the joy that is to be found in living an honorable and decent life. I aspire to be the tool with which composers create the great music of the world. Use me to express the deep sentiments that you feel about yourself, about the people you love and about this magnificent and very often confusing world. In expressing yourself, you discover who you are and what you aspire to do with your life. Use me to become the person you were meant to be.”

There was also a Siddur, a Jewish prayer book. He pressed the button once again. “I am a Siddur. I aspire to be more than I am. I contain words and prayers that bring consolation and hope, understanding and tolerance, contentment and peace. I aspire to be your link to G’d. Use me so that you can find a refuge from the ordinary things in life you have to do. Use me so that you can find an island in time, that is a short time during which you can find a moment of peace and can have a meaningful dialogue with yourself and with G’d. I am a Siddur. I aspire to be more than just paper and ink and letters. Use me so that you can become the person you were meant to be.”

The man moved on to another object. There was a newspaper. This time the voice said, “I am a newspaper. I aspire to be more than I am. I aspire to always speak the truth. I aspire to inform and to be a sentinel that rings the alarm, when men or nations begin to act in ways that signal danger for the rest of Mankind. I aspire to honor those who have earned recognition and foster productive discussion of the issues of the day. I will note the coming of new life and the passing of those who have completed their journey. I aspire to be a tool that Mankind can use to build a just and equitable community of men, women and children. Use me to find your rightful place in that community. Use me to become the person you were meant to be.”

A little further along was a hammer. When the man pushed the button, he heard the following message. “I am a hammer. Use me to build useful objects that will make the world more comfortable or more functional. Use me to build a table or a wall. Use me to build a bookshelf to hold the knowledge of the world. Use me to build a house to protect a family from the rain and the cold, a place that they can call home. Use me in whatever way you see fit. Use me to achieve your most ambitious dreams. Use me to become the person you were meant to be.”

And there, among all these items was a plain, ordinary brick. The man wondered why the people who had put this exhibit together had bothered to include a brick.

He pressed the button nearest the brick. “I am a brick. I aspire to be part of something greater than myself. Add me to a stack of bricks and use me to create the structures that make this world a wonderful place in which to live. Put me into the wall of your home. Make me part of a skyscraper that soars up into the sky a hundred stories high or more. Use me to build a monument that honors the achievements and sacrifices of ordinary men and women. When you create a Synagogue, a cathedral or the structure that houses a School, include me in that building. And when you build a place to hold the Supreme Court of the United States, I want to be one of the bricks in that place. I am a brick. I aspire to be a part of something greater than myself. Use me as you strive to achieve your own dreams and aspirations. Use me to become the person you were meant to be.”

The man stood silently before the brick, humbled by what he had just heard. He had just been made to realize that even the most ordinary of objects can aspire to make a meaningful difference in the world. He had been made to realize that even a small child whose life had been tragically cut short, did aspire to make the world a better place…and because the world knew him, the world was “changed for the better… because [the world knew him, this world] was changed for good.”

He glanced at his watch and saw that he had run out of time and had to return to his home and his family. As he left that small room, he turned and looked back at that case of seemingly ordinary objects and he knew that having seen them and heard their voices, he would never be the same person ever again.