Giving Back

Nobody encouraged me to get involved, but it felt like the right thing to do, and it was. When we begin giving back to our community on the premise that we are giving of ourselves and not to receive personal gain, it ends up backfiring in the most positive of ways. We receive so much more than we gave. The gifts are not on a retail shelf or on the hottest dot com websites.  Instead, they are gifts of emotion, purpose, connectivity, aspiration, and the gift of hope.

So why do we stay involved? If we’re not receiving tangible gifts then why aren’t we spending our free time with a good book, vacationing, or playing Candy Crush Saga? It’s likely because we have become addicted to relationships and personal growth we have received when we become part of something that is bigger than ourselves. In other words, it’s called loyalty.

Simply put, when we give to others we also receive. It has become emphatically clear to me that my purpose on this earth is not self-fulfillment through television, shopping, or by spending many hours a day on the internet. Rather, it’s about waking up every morning, and before my feet hit the floor I ask myself “What can I do to help someone today?”

This is not meant to be self-centered, but I think that if more people asked themselves (and their friends) this question every day (even once a week), the world would be a lot better off. So this is my daily food for thought, my friends. Thanks for listening to another one of my ramblings.