An attitude of generosity

One of the things I've learned from living with over 20 different roommates in the past eight years, is that it helps to have an attitude of generosity.

Generosity encompasses much more than giving money.  We can be generous in our thoughts by thinking well of people and giving them excuses when things go wrong.  We can be generous in our words by thanking people, complimenting them and praising their good work.  We can be generous in our time by listening, spending time with people and paying attention to them.  We can be generous in our actions by doing things that we think others would appreciate.  It could be washing dishes or taking out the garbage or choosing to buy the type of juice or cereal they like or adjusting the driver's seat of the car after we're done with it so that they don't have to adjust it themselves when they use it next.  The possibilities for being generous are endless -- and most of them, especially the most meaningful ones, have nothing to do with money.

Having an attitude of generosity goes a long way towards living happily with people.  The key is, in our generosity we mustn't come with an expectation of reciprocation from others.  Some people may be generous in return and some may not.  We may also find our generosity rewarded in ways that we could never have foreseen.  But even if we don't see such rewards, internally we feel the reward of our generosity through a goodness growing in our hearts.  And ultimately, we pray that the final rewards of our generosity come from The Most Generous.

Feeding hungry hearts

When we started Project Downtown, we learned that it's not just about feeding hungry stomachs, but also hungry hearts.  So, when we go out and deliver our food packages, we try to stop and talk to the people we meet, ask them how they're doing and listen to them.  It's our small attempt to alleviate hunger in the heart as well as the stomach.

Today, I was reminded again of how the benefits of giving don't fall solely upon the recipient.

As we were walking back to the car after delivering our packages, we passed a group of the guys opening their packages and eating the sandwiches we made.  They smiled and thanked us and wished us a good evening and a good weekend.  We wished them the same.  My heart swelled.

After Project Downtown, a few of us had dinner together and spent the rest of the evening chatting and hanging out.  I love to spend an evening spent chatting and hanging out with friends.  It just fills me up.  And because we do Project Downtown every week, we get to hang out every week as well.  And I realized that Project Downtown also feeds my own hungry heart.

Three hearts

Every Friday afternoon, my friends and I do Project Downtown.  We put together packages of food and snacks - lately it's been a hot dog or hamburger, a granola bar or two, a cheese bun and/or a muffin, an orange, a banana and juice - and distribute them to people hanging around City Hall who look like they would appreciate the food. 

We learned about Project Downtown four years ago, when a student from the US came to Toronto and introduced it to us.  One of the things he told us has really stuck with me.

Recently, I realized that it's something that applies to any good work or act of kindness done to benefit another person.

He said that when we go out and do Project Downtown, our actions touch three hearts.  One, we touch the heart of the recipient.  Two, we touch the heart of the person who sees us do what we do.  And three, we touch our own hearts.

In the eye of the beholder

True beauty is in the eye of the beholder.  That was the topic in our Toastmasters table topics competition today.  Thankfully, I didn't participate.  I can only imagine what nonsense I would have blabbered on about if I was tasked with talking about this for 1-2 minutes, impromptu.   As a member of the audience, though, I had the benefit of a whole day to think about it.

I thought of how much of what we see is as much a reflection of our selves as it is of what we're looking at.  Sheikh Mukhtar Maghraoui talks about this with respect to what we see with our hearts.  Just as the eyes are organs of perception, so is the heart.  The heart can sense and be moved by beauty in the world around it.

But not all hearts see equally well.  Hearts can become clouded by evil thoughts and actions.  Such hearts may no longer be able to see beauty or they may see the beautiful as ugly.  So we struggle to purify our hearts with good thoughts and good actions.  In the hopes that we can see clearly again.  In the hopes that we can see and be moved by beauty.