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| Version | User | Scope of changes |
|---|---|---|
| Jul 12 2009, 8:42 AM EDT (current) | monk51295 | |
| Jul 6 2009, 10:57 AM EDT | monk51295 | 5 words added |
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| c e l e b r a t e a verb to show happiness that something good or special has happened by doing such things as eating and drinking t o g e t h e r or playing music I told them about my promotion, and we went out to celebrate.
Celebrations are awesome, they help us stop and realize the important people in our lives. That's what makes holidays so special - paying tribute to the people and the relationships that give our lives meaning. Speaking of special relationships, mom, mom, mom. This year a local radio station guy advertised a very cool idea right before Mother's Day. He suggested that you not only get a card for your mom - but also for a mom in Afghanistan. When you did this, a "generous friend" provided an Afghan mother with one prenatal care appointment. Very nice Mother's Day gift. A lovely act of kindness - the world can applaud and celebrate. But wait - too often the story ends there, when that's just the beginning. There now exists a connection where none existed before. You connect with a mom in another part of the world. Don't you want to make sure things go well for her? After all, one pre-natal visit? Really? Maybe you can find a way to communicate. Maybe you can make a real difference for this mom, by showing her you value her. Pre-natal care is extremely important, but human relationships are what gives true purpopse - to any celebration. (By the way, do make sure you celebrate the relationship you have with your own mom. Too often relationships closest to us go uncelebrated.) What possibilities resonate here? How cool would it be to start celebrating all holidays this way. Many people already spend Christmas and Thanksgiving preparing and serving meals for the homeless, etc. How delightful would it be to spread this idea throughout the entire year and most importantly - to reach out in a truly relational manner. Imagine the connectedness you will feel if you start sharing stories with those you are helping and those you are collaborating with. Focusing on people and how we relate, rather than just a service, will help your celebrations and connections become rich. What better gift to yourself? ...to the world? A relational guru, Seth Godin, recently posted this birthday idea on his blog site. What if...say you like shoes, so on your birthday, you ask all your friends to buys shoes, not for you, but for themselves, or better yet - for others. My. The possibilities. Most of us spend ridiculous amounts of money on gifting others with things of abundance. There are so many people in need today, of vital things, and so many organizations out there already meeting some of those needs. It would be so simple to jump in today and start making a significant difference in the world. Even buying a pair of shoes can make a difference. Making a decision, a commitment, with your friend(s), to reach out and help others, brings you closer to that friend. You now share an experience much more meaningful than traditional gift-giving. You become more committed to a greater cause, and more committed to each other. d r i p: Why not take Seth's suggestion, start with your birthday. Declare your birthday a National Day of (fill in the blank), turning it into a day of reaching out, of giving away, a day filled with self-less acts of kindness. As Seth points out, even the cost saved in birthday cards would be huge - perhaps enough to feed or cloth a family in a developing country, provide a home for an orphan in Uganda, provide clean water for one person for 20 years, ... just to name a few. You will be amazed how the connections you make with others will change your life in the process. Maybe you will connect with one of your recipients. Maybe you will connect with some incredible person within the organization you are supporting. Do connect with someone. Make every experience meaningful. Don't just play the game of giving. Simply giving may allow everyone involved momentary reward, but in the end - we all want and need more than that. t r i c k l e: Why not take it to another level and celebrate all the holidays this way? What fun new traditions you could start. What an impact you and your friends/family could make - together. Life is more when we celebrate, and celebration is successful when we do it with and for others. So don't just stick with common holidays (Christmas, Thanksgiving, 4th of July), celebrate crazy holidays. Try Ground Hogs' Day...hogs to pigs, buy a pig to meet a family's basic needs and restore and improve their environments at the same time. Mardi Gras is all about beads....buy some beads to provide income, food, medicine, school fees and hope. April Fools' Day...secure access to learning for developing countries. Labor Day....help Latino women earn a living. Valentine's Day...give a heart. Love is the movement. Yes? Ok - so you have google, or here's a catalog of ideas, add to the list...it's a lovely adventure in and of itself. It helps you realize what brilliant minds are out there - creating and innovating - to make the world a better place. Why not join them? Why not make a commitment to connect in some way - to the people you are reaching out to and the people you are reaching out with? f l o o d: The possibilities are endless - but our lives are not. Life is too short to wait for man-made holidays. Why not flood it up? Celebrate every day by reaching out. Mentor a kid down the street, or one on the other side of the world. Can you imagine the relationships you could create? Too much you say? Too busy you say? Do you realize what one minute a day can do? Do you realize what one dollar a day can do? Do you realize the difference skipping one lunch can make? We take so much for granted. We do so little because we think in order to make a difference, we have to do a lot. That goes for relationships as well. Small snippets of time combined with the understanding of long-term commitment - it can be that simple. If only we understood what a difference small change can make. Have you noticed how coins have become insignificant? We don't even pick up a dime on the ground anymore. For too many of us, people have become insignificant as well. In our busy-ness and our businesses, we get in too much of a hurry and forget that it's the people around us, the interactions, that make things meaningful. Check out this incredible image/thought that was originally sprayed on the side of a commercial premises in Brunswick Street, Fitzroy.  Most people in need, don't want just a hand out, they don't want your coins. Not that they don't need them, or that they couldn't use them, but in the reality of human existence, what we crave most is relationship. Jacqueline Novogratz's story paints this picture loud and clear. She was giving her all to help African women. Her heart was in the right place, they needed her, it was seemingly a perfect fit. Why were her efforts rejected, even attacked? The answer lies in relationship. It wasn't until a relationship was established between Jacqueline and the women she was trying to help, that incredible, meaningful work began.Without relationship, there really is no meaning. With relationship, even when we're all doing something relatively small - the thing becomes huge - we become huge...and meaning emerges. Meaning emerges, change is cake. drip...trickle...flood... Your choice - just be sure to steep your celebrations in relationships. Truly connect one-on-one with another human soul. Great formula for soul peace. Who doesn't want soul peace? Now to get you going....give a listen here to Lean on Me ...recorded by guys who are playing for change. |
