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Lessons in Giving From the Heart
By Deborah Taylor-Hollis
Christmas brings lots of giving memories to mind for me, especially since my mom was such a unique gift-maker and giver. One year when I was about 11, she took me into a store and told me that she needed to send a gift to a little girl my age and asked what I would choose to send to her.
I picked out two or three cheap things that I kind of liked very quickly, but kept fixating on what I wanted her to buy for me--a rather expensive scarf and hat set. The store only had the one and it was beautiful and thick, and I couldn't keep my mind off of it.
Mom made it a point to explain about giving to others less fortunate, and how important it was to open our hearts and to give out of JOY, not responsibility. Eventually, after about 40 minutes of going around the store, I told her that she should buy this scarf set for the little homeless girl instead; that it was so warm she would get more use of it than I, and that it was the right thing to do.
Christmas morning, under the tree, that scarf set had my name on it, and when I opened it, I cried and felt like I had done something wrong. Mom patiently explained that I had learned the lesson she wanted me to have, and had sent another set in a different color to the child on her list.
She wanted me to understand that giving from the heart is not a chore, but a blessing we make to ourselves. It was not a good thing to give because one had to, and that giving without it being something special or personal was not what she intended me to understand, or learn.
Over the years, Mom gave me teddy bears for no reason, made wreaths for any occasion that struck her fancy, and was the one who always called me for a lunch date--just to get dressed up and go out. She taught me about window shopping in the city during the holidays just to see the displays, and how to surprise people some mornings with a basket of bakery goodies and napkins for no reason. She took me door to door collecting for everything important, from cerebral palsy to child abuse, animal shelters to open space.
Mom often had holes in her underwear, and she used her toothbrush until the bristles were a joke, saving the money so she could afford things for others. When she wasn't giving of her cash, she gave of her time. She worked tirelessly for years as chairwoman for local committees, and helped shepherd a young woman from 'Miss Milpitas' through a summer of pageants to the finale as 'Miss California,' just so the girl could get her college scholarship money.
Before you wrap up the gifts for your best friend, your children, or your wife, please take a moment, and think of someone in your childhood who gave for no other reason than to see the smile on the face of the receiver.
There are several needy groups, which would make good places to give a bit of your heart.
The Peltier Holiday Gift Drive, organized by Leonard Peltier, is an annual benefit for the children of the Pine Ridge Lakota Nation in South Dakota. This is one way Leonard continues his humanitarian work for his people despite his incarceration.
You can send gifts, such as new toys and winter clothing to the addresses listed below. Thanks to Peltier supporters, last year's gift drive was very successful. Pine Ridge continues to be the most impoverished community in the entire United States.
Send gifts to either Geraldine Janis or Roslyn Jumping Bull, members of the Leonard Peltier Defense Committee Elders Council. This will help widen the distribution. Contact Roslyn Jumping Bull, P.O. Box 207, Oglala, SD 57764, or Geraldine Janis, P.O. Box 525, Pine Ridge, SD 57770.
For giving closer to home, the local elementary schools are into their canned food drive, and any school office will accept canned goods for the homeless, as will most Safeway stores that have collection barrels at the door.
The local outlet for women and children to receive clothing, blankets, sleeping bags and other needed items is Sacred Heart Services, 1381 S. First St. at Minnesota Avenue. Their phone number is 408.283.5800. They have drop-off drive-through space at their rear door, open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays, for donations.
Contact Deborah Taylor-Hollis at DTHollis@Metronews.com.
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Willow Glen, California Since 1992
