Making A Powerful Noise “ PAY IT FORWARD” Part II

Posted by Kathy on Feb 3, 2009 in Blog | 2 comments

Quote: “I have found that among its other benefits, giving liberates the soul of the giver.” Maya Angelou

 I have never met a person who didn’t want to make a difference. The problem is our perception of what that looks like. We have lives, families and jobs that suck up our free time so that what is left would fit in a shoebox.  The idea of “paying it forward” makes us feel overwhelmed and guilt-ridden. So how do we shift to this new mindset without losing our sanity? If we owe the world something—what can we give and what does that look day to day?

 Perhaps a first step is to recognize that this is a lifestyle decision. We each need to consider how giving most naturally fits into our life, our values and habits.  Here are some suggestions:

Make it easy.  A friend of mine forwarded a blog from a woman named Melinda Groth, who found a way to do just that. She calls it Modus Operand +1. Melinda says,“For the past couple of months, I have grown a habit of doing/making/buying one more thing daily, that benefits someone else. The action is based on expanding on something that I was doing already, anyway, but added one additionally. Thus the term+1.” You can read more about it at http://melindalgroth.blogspot.com/

Find your own need and fill it.  Think of something you would want others to do for you. Sometimes our own life experience can be the catalyst for filling needs.  My friend Karen Sjoblom is a single mom who knows just how lonely and hard it can be when the bathroom plumbing goes awry, the car breaks down and you are a party of one. She and her business partner Cathy Brewer, started “Eve’s Daughters” so single moms in crisis won’t have to walk alone. Read more at www.evesdaughters.org/

Do something you enjoy. No one said giving had to be painful, it should be something joyful and celebratory.  Knowing that giving is for us, it should be something we can’t wait to do. My Dad has rare gift of writing ‘ODES’ for people and all the events of their lives. From birthday’s to the grave, he notices the small little movements of their dance and writes the words that celebrate their footsteps.  His gift is to honor the human need to be acknowledged. Through out his life, Dad has written volumes of Odes, which say, “You are important, I see you, and I celebrate your life.”

Don’t censor the size of your mission. Some of us may be called to do big things for people or maybe something for thousands of people. A Powerful Noise is a documentary film about women changing the world and is coming to a theater near you in March. 
Hanh is an HIV-positive widow in Vietnam. Nada, a survivor of the Bosnian war. And Jacqueline works the slums of Bamako, Mali. A Powerful Noise takes you inside the lives of these women to witness their daily challenges and significant victories over poverty and oppression.

Act first, think later. Time is the enemy of many a spontaneous opportunity for giving.  If we think about anything long enough we can usually find reasons not to do it.  My friend Sue Donaldson, shared a story in her blog www.welcomeheart.com yesterday that is a perfect example of why we need to act when prompted. Sue shares the story of a single mom named Suzanne and man named Peter.

 Suzanne’s a single mom. Her adult daughter moved to Texas to get a job, but all her furniture was still here. A couple weeks ago, Suzanne was telling our friend Peter at church that she needed to figure out how to get everything to Austin, and he piped up, “I used to live in Austin – I’ll drive it for you – and, I have business there, so my company can fly me home!” Wow!

I said, “Didn’t that just make you cry?!” She said, “Well, yes–this is the first time I’ve talked about it without crying!” God is good. Peter heard the need and acted on it. All he said was, “Let me check with my wife (always a good thing!)– but I think it’s a ‘go’.”

He’s already back and I talked with him briefly yesterday at church. He met Heather for the first time when he drove up with all her earthly goods. Wow – what a great guy! His only comment to me was: “Life is short, you have to act where and when you can. When I was young, I used to want to change the world. Now, I realize, I can just change one life at a time.”

Pass on the legacy of giving. If giving is our lifestyle, chances are it will become our children’s as well. My favorite Christmas as a child is one where we gave our Christmas away.  Mom & Dad asked us if we would be willing to give up some of our Christmas to help another family who was struggling.  I remember thinking this was really a lot to ask of us, but my sister and I begrudgingly said, “Yes.” This family had two girls about the same age of my sister and I. Cindee and I got to go shopping for their presents, picking out the dolls we would have chosen for ourselves.  I remember the night we got to take it over to them, and how excited we were. We took a tree, dinner preparations and packages.  I remember how everything lit up their small home, and how warm I felt inside.  It was the truly my favorite Christmas ever.

So let’s go make a powerful noise in our neighborhoods, our communities, and in our country. Make it easy, fun and meaningful and don’t let an opportunity go by or censor the size of your mission. The truth is “Paying it forward” is not for those who need your help so desperately; it is for YOU, your soul, your joy, your happiness. As Oprah has been known to say, “Now that you know the truth, you can’t pretend no one told you.”