Posts tagged social media

People who you can give to are not necessarily obvious to you.  It is easy to identify a homeless person on the street and know they are in need. A child crying from hunger is a no brainer. But some people who could benefit from your give of the day are not that easy to spot sometimes and we have to let the world take care of these serendipitous moments where the universe presents a giving moment and we give when the opportunity arises, not when we are looking for it.

Day 287: Give 287

Well dressed is not a sign that giving is not needed

Recently a woman I know, a well dressed, manicured, successful business woman cried to me on the phone.  She finally had arrived at the realization that she had to leave her bad marriage with a psychologically and verbally abusive husband.  Despite her day to day appearance, she was stuck and needed a place to stay, a friend to support this terrifying move and felt that she had come to the end of her rope. Despite her appearance and full time work she had nowhere to turn, no money for a place to stay and no other option but to leave their house to get out of this situation. I was surprised. There was no previous discussions about this situation nor did I have any idea that this was happening. Without hesitation, I opened my house to her.

Giving knows no bounds

My give was a safe quiet place, a bed, pillows, closet space, and a place to rest her head for a while. I willing will share and welcome her into my home.  No rent, no hassles. This home will be full of compassion and the opportunity for her to take the steps needed to move forward in her life. There were no questions, mi casa es tu casa.

A Give is needed by everyone at some point in their life

I encourage everyone to be open to these spontaneous moments. You don’t have to open up your home but you can be open to others when they may need a hand no matter who they are or what they do. We are wired to give to those who financially or geographically don’t have what we have, but a give can help a well respected friend or colleague who at the moment is not able to handle their emotional situation. Be open to a plea for help from your neighbor, a co-worker or someone you may even admire. You may see a person in need of a give and not be open to providing a give of the day as they have financial resources. Emotional bankruptcy can be more difficult than financial bankruptcy and harder sometimes to recover from.   It may not be the need for a place to sleep but it could be as simple as a smile, a caring pat on the back or a should to lean on if only for a minute.  It is those we think are least likely to need our spontaneous random act of kindness that could really use one. Don’t let looks deceive you, everyone one needs a hand up at some point.

Guest Post by: 

Kay Walten is a social media consultant that lives in Mexico and the USA. She is involved in many community projects around the world with a passion for woman focused projects in Tanzania. Kay has been raising money for communities for decades and continues to follow her passion to give her expertise as a social media specialist and speaker in Destination Marketing and Tourism Social Media Strategies to events and charities. Follow Kay on twitter @kaywaltengroup to see what community project she is heading up next or what community will benefit from her crowd sourcing expertise!