While there is so much unrest in the world, there are also wonderful people and happenings. We have much to be thankful for. Whether it's family, work, health, friends, community, we all have something. 

 

This is a good time to do good deeds for others. Our best gifts to them are just to show up and be there.  Soup kitchens, nursing homes and shelters are all good choices. When we give from our hearts without thinking of our own gain, then we truly give.

This story told to me by my late father and in my book Pathfinding, illustrates this: "A very wealthy man in town approached a poor carpenter who had been struggling all his life. He says, "I'm going away for a year and I want you to build me a house. I am going to give you all the money you need to do it right. I want the best of everything that you can get to build the house. As the carpenter began building the house he says to himself, "The owner isn't going to know the difference. Why should I use all this expensive stuff when I can put in cheap imitations and pocket the difference." So he builds the house as cheaply as he can. The rich man comes back and the carpenter gives him the house key. The rich man says to the carpenter, 'No, here. The key is for you. I wanted to build the house for you, so I am giving you the house as a present.'The moral of the story is be careful, don't cheat because you may be cheating yourself." Kahlil Gibran wrote, "You give but little when you give of your possessions. It is when you give of yourself that you truly give." 

 Happy Holidays!