Happy Generosity Day

I'm over the moon to be part of a movement to reboot Valentine's Day into something way bigger.

Love in action = generosity!



I can't wait to share with you my experiences on my first ever official Generosity Day.

You can learn more about this movement here.

I first heard about it here.

I'm so excited to see what opportunities for generosity appear in my life today!

What are your plans today?

Good Karma Yard Sale

I have too much stuff. It often feels like more of a burden than the luxury that it is. In order to simplify a bit, I'm holding a Good Karma Yard Sale tomorrow. Instead of collect everything and then labeling/pricing it and then trucking it outside, I'm collecting stuff now and tomorrow I will put it on the lawn with a FREE sign.

I believe that people who really want or need the things will have them, and I will be free of them. It's a win-win and lots of good energy.

I've done this once before with crazy and amazing results. When moving back to Ohio from Seattle, I opened my apartment for friends to take what they wanted/needed. That felt so good, but it's not the end of the story. The week after the event my brother and sister-in-law called to see if we would like their old car. For 3 years we had no need to own a car, but Ohio would be really tricky without a car. The abundance that came to us was amazing! (That car is still running--we passed it on to someone else in need when we bought a new car!)

I'll share more after the event.

What do you do that brings you abundance?

Secret Mission Revealed

Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

So I told you I was going on a secret mission. My secret mission was a card drop. I left little turquoise cards anywhere and everywhere I went. They had little inspiring quotes and affirmations on them.

While this was a great experience that was full of simple surprises and unexpected turns, the most surprising part was what it did for me. I was so ENERGIZED--especially on a creative level. I had good strong clear ideas spilling out of me and into my spiral notebook all day long. It will take me several weeks to just enact the ideas I had.

I continue to be amazed and surprised by how giving to others affects me. I wrote about it here a few months ago. My secret mission once again reinforced this crazy concept that when we giving we receive so much in return. I'm already thinking about my next secret mission!

How does giving affect you?

Books and Abundant Generosity

So it's Friday and time for some books! I'm going to pass on something I wrote for a seasonal booklet. I think I've recommended these here, but not quite this way:

Abundant Generosity

Proverbs 22:9 “A generous man will himself be blessed. . .”

This is a season of giving. For most of us that means extra stress about spending money—often more than we can afford, remembering who all we should give a gift or mail a card to, and so on. Stress, stress, and more stress. Is generosity supposed to be stressful? Is giving supposed to leave us depleted? I doubt it.

This year many books have crossed my path about giving, and two stand out to me. The books are 29 Gifts by Cami Walker and The Power of Half by Kevin and Hannah Salwen. I love these memoirs, because generosity had the most amazing effect in the lives of the giving participants—not the recipients. Through giving the authors are miraculously and tangibly changed—physically, socially, spiritually.

This has really gotten me wondering if we are taught to give for what it does for others or what it really does for us. My focus is shifting from giving because I should or even the needs or desires of others to what I am supposed to learn or gain from the experience. I’m also evaluating how and what I give. I’m trying to be more experiential and less material. The shift is subtle and deep and abundant. And I am blessed.

What are your thoughts on generosity?