Day 354: Family Give Day: The Sister Give
Oct 2nd
I think we have all heard the saying ‘Charity begins at home‘ and this week this could not be more true! My sister has started this movement, 365give.ca where she writes everyday, gives everyday to people she knows, people she does not know, the planet, international organizations and tons of other causes and projects. She has been giving for more years than anyone would know and I am thrilled that she has formalized her passion and energy into a public educational program.
But sometimes the giver needs a give. And sometimes your sister needs a give to get her over a large hurdle.
So the give today is to my sister, Jacqueline Way, and this give will continue for the ext few days as she gets settled into Mommyhood once again. See Day 353 on her newest family member and miracle.
Day 354: Give 354: The Giver gets a Give: guest post by Nicola Inwood
If you have not heard, my sister Jacqueline will be adopted a new baby this week. This has been a long process of waiting, some disappointments as there were some adoptions that did not go through, some heart wrenching moments and some great patience on her part. The day has come when she gets her greatest give, a new baby, and as her sister, I get to give her the greatest give, making sure that she has support for another passion, 365give.
We live in different countries, and at this point will not overload her house with yet another person to get in the way, I will from afar give my time and dedication to her 365give.ca site as she settles into motherhood2 (squared). The duty of 365give.ca will be taken off if need be and I will submit the posts, or tweet or post on facebook while she settles.
This is my give to my sister for as long as she needs.
The Giver is not the best Receiver
In case you are not aware, Givers are not the best receivers. There are many givers out there, many of you who read this blog are great givers and one of the downfalls of a Giver is that they do not receive very well. It is my hope that Jacqueline will become as good of a Receiver as she is a Giver in this circumstance. Having a new baby pop into your life without the 9 months of preparation is a big change, and I only want the best for her, her first born Nicolas and husband David in this case. So work with me people and lets give Jacqueline full support as she flips into this new family mode.
Remember your family when thinking about your give of the day
It is easy to forget about our own family when we are thinking about the give of the day. But charity does start at home and I am happy that on 365give.ca we can ironically come full circle. So I am dedicating this day today, as a Family Give Day, where each of us looks to our immediate family, husband, sister, brother, child or roommate and give to them today.
We have Fathers Day, we have Mothers Day, we have Secretary’s Day and Bosses Day, but for some reason we don’t have a Sisters Day or Brothers Day. Mexico celebrates Kids Day, El dia de los Ninos, but sisters and brothers seem to be forgotten in these celebrations. So in your give today, phone your sister, help them with a chore, take their kids, or tell them that you appreciate them. Write them a note like Jacqueline did on Father’s Day.
Sisters Day Today
So if the 365give voice seems a bit different, know that it is Jacqueline’s sister providing a give of the day to help her settle in. It may be one give it may be a series of gives, but the Giver is getting a give for as long as she needs it….
Time commitment – Does not matter
Price – Priceless, the opportunity to give to your sister is really priceless
Related Gives
My other sister gives to 365give on Jacqueline’s birthday
Day 353: The #1 Reason to Drop All Social Media Tools for a Day!
Oct 1st
- One day with out Twitter!
- One day without Facebook!
- One day with no writing on your blog or updating your website
- One day not evening responding to the emails coming in from all over the world.
There is only one reason to let is all go when you have committed to giving every day for 365 days – A Miracle.
Day 353: Give 353
Day 352 is the ultimate 365give. Two days ago my husband and I adopted a baby boy. The #1 reason to put everything in your life on hold.
- Do you remember what it was like to hold your child in your arms for the very first time?
- Do you remember that feeling of love that washes over your entire body and soul when you look at your child?
This is a story of a miracle – a little baby boy that finally got to feel his forever families love wrapped around his heart forever.
If today is your first time reading 365give I will share my story with you. 365give was inspired by my first son, Nicolas. Nicolas was adopted by my husband and I when he was just 12 weeks old. He is my inspiration to make the world a better place. 2 days ago was a very special day – it was his 4th birthday. Exactly 1 year ago that I started 365give. (365give but due to be finished on this day but due to hacking I was shut down for 2 weeks). It is also the day we brought his brother home.
On Day 286: Giving to Help Grief I wrote a very personal story of how my husband and I had were trying to adopt a baby for the second time through the Ministry of Children and Family Development and just hours before we were to meet our second child the adoption was cancelled. This was the second time this had happened to us in the last year and half.
It was a very sad day in our house. The little boy we were already calling our son was going into foster care. I held hope in my heart that one day he would still come home – I had never met him or even seen a picture of him but I already loved him like he was my own.
1 month later we received the call we had been waiting for – our son was finally legally available for adoption. I jumped with joy as my heart sang with the words telling me my dream had come true.
But there was yet another stumbling block.
The paper work to actually get him in our house would take another month to complete. How was I possibly going to wait a month knowing my son was just a short drive away but I was not able to see him, hold him or tell him I loved him. We had to wait.
If you ever really want to learn patience in your life go through an adoption like this one. Every day that went by I felt more anxious, more fearful I would loose him again. I had to keep the faith that if we were destined to be together it would all work out. I was being told to “Let it Be.”
After weeks of waiting I could not take it any more – I was in tears from the stress and anxiety from all the weeks that had gone by and in that moment the call came. The paper work was finally ready and we would have our son home in just days.
That day has arrived and my beautiful boy is finally here. You never know how much you can love in your life until you hold a miracle in your arms.
My give of the day yesterday was to take the entire day off from social media to spend with both my sons. My “Buddha Boys” as I am now calling them. They are both “pure love.” It is easy to get so wrapped up in the world of Twitter and FB and now Google +1 but at the end of the day the most important thing in the world are our children.
They deserve our full attention, our time, and our love.
Do you have a miracle you would like to share? Send us your story. Let’s remind everyone that the world is not filled with just bad stories and miracles do happen.
Time Commitment: A life time of giving and unconditional love to my son
Day 352: Who is Kiva Anyway?
Sep 29th
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=38QqK7MElSY&feature
When I started 365give I had no idea what Kiva was or how micro financing really worked.
On Day 9 I made my first Kiva loan and the giving will continue for a lifetime.
Day 352: Give 352
It all started with $125 loan. It has now turned into giving an additional $220 worth of loans. How does that work?
I just keep re-giving the funds. I even get an email reminding me when my loan has been repaid or a portion of the loan, so I am able to give again. You can choose your loans by region, gender even the type of business you would like to support. You can give a Kiva Gift Card for birthdays and holidays ( I did just that on Day 163 to my nephews – an additional $50).
Today my loan went to a group of women in Viet Nam. I like to support women around the world to start and grow businesses. This photo instantly grabbed me. The strength and determination in these women’s faces was obvious. The women are in the agricultural business and you know how hard they must work to raise their families and manage the business at the same time. I was honoured to assist them in any way I could.
Have you given to Kiva? Share your story with us!
Time Commitment: 3 minutes to reinvest my loan
Cost: $50 loan that cost me nothing part of my original $125 loan.
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