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Today's
Quotation:
It was our
belief that the love of possessions is a weakness to be
overcome. Its appeal is to the material part, and if allowed its way, it
will in
time disturb one's spiritual balance. Therefore, children must
early
learn the beauty of generosity. They are taught to give what
they
prize most, that they may taste the happiness of giving.
Ohiyesa,
Santee Sioux
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Today's
Meditation:
I
often wish that I were a more generous person. In many
ways, I'm quite selfish, though it's not necessarily
something that I do on a conscious level. As an Adult
Child of an Alcoholic, I have the constant subconscious fear
that I'm going to lose all that I have at any moment, and my
tendency is to try to hold on to things. Add to that
the fact that I grew up in a military family and we moved
constantly, my childhood was full of loss, over and
over--the loss of friends, of home, of stability, etc.
I
don't resent these facts, and I don't dwell on them. I
mention them only because they help to explain my lack of
generosity, the unwillingness I feel sometimes to give
things to others. It's something that's very hard for
me, but something that I work at constantly. Usually I
fear that if I give something away, I'll end up needing it
sometime soon, and I won't have it. Or ironically
enough, I fear that someone else will need it, and I won't
be able to give it to the next person who needs it.
But
the fact is that almost nothing is irreplaceable, and there
are very few things in life that I truly need to hold on
to. I am getting better at seeing this fact and giving
things away, but I still wish that I had learned the beauty
of giving while I was still a child, for then I think it
would be a much more natural part of myself, and many more
people would benefit from the fact that I was willing to
give more of myself and more of my things.
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