As an elderly woman washed her clothes in a mountain stream, a traveler came by and asked her for food. The woman reached into her bag and produced a loaf of bread for the hungry traveler. With her bag open, he noticed a stone he most assuredly knew to be valuable. The hungry traveler pointed toward the stone and asked the woman if he could have it. She reached in her bag and handed the stranger the stone without hesitation.
The traveler rejoiced in his good fortune because he knew the stone was worth enough to give him security for a lifetime. A few days later, he journeyed back along the mountain stream in search of this wise woman. He found her. “I’ve been thinking,” he said. “I know how valuable this stone is, but I give it back in the hope that you can give me something even more precious. Please share with me what you have within you that enabled you to give me this stone.”
I read this Native American fable and thought about the human nature that draws us toward giving and taking. Recently, Roger and I signed up for a local blood drive. Those who donate blood within a certain period of time will be registered to win a year’s worth of free gasoline – not a bad prize for the selfless gift of a pint.
I truly believe the folks who are going to give blood will do it for the sake of saving lives and not in hopes of winning the one huge carrot dangling on a stick – and from what I forked over at the pumps today, free gas for a year is one grand enticer. Not everyone is a giver, but People who do, do so because something from within propels them.
When I think of selfless giving, my memory rests upon a woman named Alice back in Tennessee. Alice loves the children and in her younger days, would offer to baby sit just about any child at any time – and the children love her. She has spent many rocking chair hours in the church nursery and every young child who has sat in her lap remembers her.
One day I stopped by Alice’s house to see some knitting patterns. Of her many claims to fame are the Christmas stockings that she knits when she knows of a new baby entering the world. She has a set of patterns copied from McCall’s magazine more than 60 years ago that feature coordinating Christmas scenes. From this tattered set of patterns, Alice has knitted Christmas stockings for everyone in her large family – not just children and grandchildren, but nieces, nephews, and cousins as well.
To knit a Christmas stocking, is to spend dozens of hours seated, both hands in motion, and focused on the task and goal. She matter-of-factly produced a log book to show me each stocking she has knitted, the date, and the recipient. The main reason for the book, she told me was that there were no duplicates of stocking patters for each family. One featured a Santa on a roof; one has Santa holding a kitten, one backing down a chimney, and so forth. I saw pages and pages of names and dates that transcend decades, and stood in amazement of this kind and awesome feat.
Some people have that intuitive gift that makes giving come so easily from the heart. I look up to these people with awe and, like the traveler who returned the stone; I wish to know the gift that lies within the hearts of those who so effortlessly give.
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