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Today's
quotation:
In
the end, though, maybe we must all give up trying to pay back
the
people in this world who sustain our lives. In the end, maybe
it's
wiser
to surrender before the miraculous scope of human
generosity and
to just
keep saying thank you, forever
and sincerely, for as long as we
have voices.
Elizabeth Gilbert,
Eat, Pray, Love
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Today's
Meditation:
I really
like this thought: just say thank you, and move on
with your life, and perhaps try to pass it on to someone
else someday, somehow. When I help someone else out,
I'm pretty much never thinking about being paid back, and
sometimes it makes me a bit uncomfortable when someone
feels that they need to pay me back. I like to give
for the sake of giving, because that's what people are
meant to do-- I don't think about recompense. And
quite honestly, once I give something, I tend to forget
that I ever gave, so the idea of being paid back really
never enters my mind.
Let's
let people be generous and appreciate what they do for us,
but not try to pay back everyone who helps us.
Perhaps one day the time will be ripe to return a favor,
but in the meantime, let's just give our thanks and move
on. I truly believe that's the best thing that we
can do, for then we're allowing other people to be kind
and generous without a caveat, without feeling obligated
to them-- because a truly kind and generous person would
not want us to feel obligated to them at all.
Pretty
much everything that we've ever had has come from others,
so it's good to just allow life to be that way and not
think about paying people back. The job you have is
the result of someone, somewhere starting a new company,
but you don't think of finding the founder and paying back
what you owe. Rather, we try to contribute here and
now in the best ways that we can, and that's what a truly
generous person will want, too. If someone helped me
out of a bad situation, helped me to get back on my feet,
I can use my newfound stability to find ways to contribute
to others, and that will be more than enough payback for
the person who helped you out. A truly generous
person would want you to pass it on, not pay it back.
There
are many wonderfully generous people on this planet.
Let us feel thankful for them, but not beholden to
them. Let us be glad for their presence in our lives
and their contributions to our lives, but let us continue
to live our lives without the feeling of owing
anyone. They don't want us to feel that way, so
let's just move on and keep the generosity flowing,
knowing that it was inspired by someone other than
ourselves, but grateful that someone taught us just how
beautiful giving can be.
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