Take a Walk and Complete Your Daily Give
Many people feel as though giving requires a huge amount of work, but this couldn’t be further from the truth. Have you ever thought that maybe you could complete your daily give simply by going for a walk? Well, think about it. There are so many simple random acts you can perform while you’re walking to make a difference and complete your daily give. The list is long but here are a few ideas to get you thinking and moving in the direction of going for a walk, getting some fresh air and completing your daily give.
A Smile a Day Keeps Everyone Happy
The one very simple but yet often hard for some people to do is to simply smile at a passerby. If you pass someone as you’re walking on the street, or in your building where you work, whether it’s someone you know or even someone you don’t know, why not smile? It really doesn’t take any extra effort on your part and it could truly make someone else’s day. One small smile at someone you don’t know could be the deal breaker in their day. They could be having a really rough day and that smile you give them could be the game changer. So, the next time you cross paths with someone, which happens many times a day for most of us, just smile. A warm smile can change a life even for a few minutes. What a difference you can make in someone else’s day and what a feeling, when you think about it like that, right?
Cleaning Up Garbage on the Streets
When we go out walking on the street, or even on a path in a park, most of the time we will see garbage. How often do you actually stop and pick up the garbage? I know that I am guilty of sometimes walking right by a pop can or an empty plastic bag or an empty water bottle and not picking it up. It really doesn’t take much to stop, bend over and pick up the piece of garbage (as long as you feel comfortable with the type of garbage it is and touching it). We could make the environment so much cleaner and happier if we took a few extra seconds to pick up that piece of garbage, instead of continuing walking and ignoring it and leaving it where you saw it. The environment and our earth needs some tender loving care as well.
Help an Elderly Neighbour
If you are out walking and you see an elderly neighbour cutting their grass, weeding, or simply sitting on their front porch watching the traffic go by alone, why not stop and ask him or her if you can lend them a helping hand by finishing cutting the grass, or weeding their flowerbeds. If they are sitting alone, why not ask if you can pull up a chair and sit with them for a little bit. It doesn’t have to be a long time, but just that little bit of time that you give them your undivided attention can really go a long way. No one likes to be alone, and it could be just what the doctor ordered. Or you could be helping them when you cut their grass for them, so that they don’t have to do the hard labour. If they ask to pay you for helping them out, please don’t accept, just knowing that you’ve given back to help someone should be payment enough.
Drop off a Friendly Note in Your Neighbourhood
Show people that there is still good in the world. Grab a pad of post-it notes and go around your neighbourhood placing a note on people’s front doors or in their mailboxes. Your note could say something as simple as: “You are awesome,” or “Have an awesome day,” or “Don’t ever change who you are, you are an amazing human being.” Can you imagine coming home from a long day at work and reaching your front door and seeing a note that says: “Hey – you are awesome, enjoy your day and never give up!” Oh what a feeling that would give your heart. For me, personally, it would totally make my day and really make me think that there are still awesome people in the world, like you and me!
If Someone is in Need Help Them
I have a personal story to share with this one. I was going for a walk about 2 weeks ago, and I happened to come upon a women’s shelter in our city that had on their front sign: “We need toilet paper and paper towels.” I thought to myself that I could help out, so when I got home, I called my kids to go with me to the grocery store, told them about the sign I had seen, got into the car, and we went to the grocery store to make the necessary purchases. My boys and I then went to the women’s shelter and dropped off a couple of packages of toilet paper and paper towels. It cost me very little but I knew that it would greatly make a difference for the women and children staying at that shelter. I felt so wonderful after I did that with my boys and it made my boys happy and with a feeling of satisfaction for a job well done and doing something to help others. It’s a feeling like no other, really! And the best part is that we wanted nothing in return, nor were we expecting anything in return. That is what giving is all about.
Pay it Forward
My boys and I went for a walk as a family about a week ago. We stopped at a coffee shop to grab a cold drink. The person in front of us, who we didn’t know, actually told the cashier that he wanted to pay for our order when she rang it through and although I thanked him and politely refused because I didn’t feel right, he said that he wanted to do that for us because someone had done the same for him a couple of days before and he wanted to pay it forward. We all thanked him and he had a big smile on his face and said “You’re so very welcome,” and left the shop. So, while we were waiting for our order to be done, the next person in line was pleasantly surprised when we did the same for her. It’s infectious when someone does something for you, you want to give back and do it for someone else. Again, such a happy feeling when we can do something for someone else.
As you can see, there are so very many different ideas for how to give back when you’re going for a walk. You can make it as exciting or as simple as you want. The point of the matter is that you are doing something to give back to someone else, to the environment, or to a cause, etc. Don’t ever feel that what you are doing isn’t enough or that you need to do more, as long as you are doing something, it’s enough!
Please share some giving ideas that you have done when going for a walk or what you are thinking of doing the next time you go for a walk. We would love to hear your ideas! Check out these other gives that you can do in just a few seconds a day.