|
Today's
Meditation:
Sometimes I feel that if I had more money, I'd be more
generous. After all, if I had more to give, I could
give more, right? That's what logic tells me.
Fortunately, I have my heart here to argue with my logic,
and it tells me that my generosity is not measured by the
amounts I give, but by the ways in which I give.
It's the spirit behind the giving that determines the true
level of my generosity, and that's important to keep in
mind.
I remember a television show in which a character bought a
car for his parents, even though his parents didn't even
want a car. And it was a luxury car to boot, which
his parents definitely didn't want. The son thought
that he was being incredibly generous just because he was
buying an expensive car for them, but in reality he was
simply fulfilling his own need to feel
generous. He didn't once consider his parents' wants
and needs-- he only thought about what he wanted to give,
and he got upset when his parents told him they didn't
really want the car.
Our giving should be from our hearts, and our giving
always should take into account the needs of the people to
whom we're giving. If we're able to follow those
simple rules, then we definitely can give in the spirit of
true generosity, and that's the spirit that benefits
everyone equally. The giving shouldn't come from a
desire to gain from it (though it's often okay if that does
happen), and it shouldn't come from a desire to make
someone else owe something back to us. True
generosity genuinely fulfills needs, and it comes from a
place of simply wanting to fulfill those needs.
I would love to be rich-- I can think of tons of ways that
I could benefit others if I were wealthy. But I'm
not, and that's that. That simple fact does not
mean, though, that I can't be a genuinely generous
person. My generosity is not dependent on my wealth,
but on my spirit and my heart.
|
