Generous...to a fault?

If you are a generous person, it is a large part of who you are.  And not just in December, but during all the months of the year.

Gary's company "adopts" about 100 kids each holiday season. There is a list of children, their ages, and what they want.  Any employee can pick any child and buy him or her the toys or clothes or dreams that the child might not have without the generosity of someone else.

This year, Gary picked a little girl who is 3 and a half. Her name starts with an A. He saw it as a sign and has been shopping for her the past month. It brings him such joy to shop for someone Allie's age and he is more than happy to do it.

It's harder for me. I can shop for Miranda and for her cousins and for other little girls and boys with no trouble whatsoever. My credit cards and Paypal account are getting quite a workout this month. I have trouble, though, shopping for a girl that is Allie's age but is not Allie. I think Gary does, too, but he can see the big picture and does it anyway.  And I am glad he does.

We learned recently that some of our generosity in another situation has been taken for granted. It hurt us to the core to think that we were doing something nice and it was not perceived that way.  Are you still generous if others do not see you that way?  I guess it depends on the situation and if the opinion of other people matters to you.  To Gary, it does not. To me, I am trying to get a thicker skin.

I want to raise my daughter in a world where people give with their hearts. Where people share what they can because they want to.  Where people are generous with their time and their love and their energy.  Not just when the lights are up and the stores have special sales, but year-round.  I think they best way to have a world like that is to make sure Gary and I behave like that is how the world works.  So that is what we will do...or continue to do, I should say. 

Miranda is still struggling with her vocabulary, but "thank you" is a phrase that comes out easily and often. At 20 months, we like to think that she understands the concept of giving and generosity. Hey, it could happen! 

That makes us both so very proud.