The Value of Giving and Receiving
"We're all just walking each other home.” Ram Dass
Image from Pixabay
We probably heard the adage “it is better to give than receive” so many times that we have developed a mindset that being on the receiving end and having to rely on someone else for help is shameful and means that you are weak. Yet, without someone to receive the gift, there can be no giver. They are two sides of the same coin.
Paying it forward
Image by Pixabay
Years and years ago I learned a lesson about how to receive a gift graciously without feeling guilty. My first husband and I were driving around the country searching for a commune we might want to join. We ran out of money in Marquette, MI and both got jobs to earn enough to move on. We both had college degrees, but could only get jobs with low wages. I was a baker at a donut shop and he was a janitor at a fast food restaurant.
Money was very tight and after paying the bills, food was in short supply. A friend that we met at church would frequently take us out for pizza. He had the beginning stages of MS but he never complained about his lot in life. When I mentioned that I felt guilty about receiving his help, he told us that the best thing to do is to pass it on to someone else when we were in a position to do so. Today they call that Paying It Forward.
I have been able to Pay It Forward many times and have also been in the position of needing help. I realize how hard it is for some people to ask for help, but I have always remembered to express gratitude and promise to pass it on when I could.
42 Boxes of Macaroni and Cheese
Image by Pixabay
One year near the holidays we had no money. We were behind on our rent and utilities. There was little food in the house. Although we knew people who had a lot of money, they did not offer to help. We did receive help from other people that had just a little more than we did and were able to share. We got a food box from our church and a neighbor down the street collected some items for us. As I put the groceries in the cupboards, I realized I had 42 box of macaroni and cheese! There are only a limited number of ways to fix macaroni and cheese. One of our favorites was to add tuna and peas. Everyone liked that recipe.
If you do have a little extra to share, please do. It will make a huge difference in the lives of people who really need help. However, when you are shopping for something to put in the donation box, don't pick up that box of macaroni and cheese. Sure it is nutritious. But everyone else has the same idea. Try something different, like a can of beef stew, or even some kind of treat like hot chocolate. It was years before I was able to even look at macaroni and cheese, although my children still liked it, bless their little hearts.
If you do have a little extra to share, please do. It will make a huge difference in the lives of people who really need help. However, when you are shopping for something to put in the donation box, don't pick up that box of macaroni and cheese. Sure it is nutritious. But everyone else has the same idea. Try something different, like a can of beef stew, or even some kind of treat like hot chocolate. It was years before I was able to even look at macaroni and cheese, although my children still liked it, bless their little hearts.
When you receive what people and the world have to give, you open up pathways you couldn’t see before, stimulate your imagination in ways that could not happen before, and have energy that was not previously available to you.
Amanda Owen from the book The Power of Receiving.
So the next time you are in need of help, remember that there are people who truly wish to give of their abundance. If you do not ask, they cannot reach out to give. Giving and receiving need each other in order to be in balance.
“There is not a man of us who does not at times need a helping hand to be stretched out to him, and then shame upon him who will not stretch out the helping hand to his brother.” Theodore Roosevelt
Amanda Owen from the book The Power of Receiving.
So the next time you are in need of help, remember that there are people who truly wish to give of their abundance. If you do not ask, they cannot reach out to give. Giving and receiving need each other in order to be in balance.
“There is not a man of us who does not at times need a helping hand to be stretched out to him, and then shame upon him who will not stretch out the helping hand to his brother.” Theodore Roosevelt