Giving

The movie “Pass it Forward” had an interesting concept.  I saw it ages ago and there is a good chance my memory is faulty, but I took from it the thought that when something good happens to me, don’t hold it tight, but pass it forward.  In other words, give good things away.
I needed a new walkway for my pool.  The one I had was disintegrating.  It did not stop me from teasing my cat by moving my long handled leaf catcher under it.  It was the first and only time I have seen a cat go vertical.  Someone advertised what I needed in a local paper.  I went and got it.  I knew I was already getting it for a good price.  The couple selling it would not even give me $2 off.  I thought to myself “you will always struggle with money.”  I was not wishing it on them, but their demeaner told me the tighter they clung to something, the more elusive it was.  The couple had told me they were getting new timber to replace their deck.  I could not fault the timber, but apparently it was not good enough for their deck.
One of the reasons I thought they were always going to struggle was they were so tight.  You tend to lose what you cling to.   An episode of the Simpsons showed Homer with his hand stuck in a drink vending machine.  Rescuers came and dismantled the machine.  The only reason his hand was stuck was he would not let go of the can.  Let go and he is free.
It is amazing how often I hear about people who get something from an unknown source.  The thing about these is they are gifts.  They could be bought at a price.  However, they are needed but if they are not received, they are not got.  This is a time that “just in time” really works.  What the receivers often have in common is they are givers.  They tend to be a river rather than a lake.  Rivers go places.  Lakes can go no-where and only ever receive.
It seems there is some truth to the saying “easy come, easy go.”  Personally, I would never advocate treating anything with distain, but it seems anything I have, can be gone in an instant.  It behoves me to hold things loosely.
“Behoves” is not a common word.  I made up a word for one of my stories.  It seemed to fit, and it worked for me.  I was not going to let a little thing like “there is no such thing” stop me.  It meant “were,” but it was supposed to be old English.
Giving is such a huge part of life.  Sometimes we do it unknowingly.  Anytime we pass on what we know in our job, we are giving.  Doing something for someone when you would rather be doing something else, is giving.  At other times, giving is a grit the teeth thing.  Sometimes we really feel that we cannot afford to give something.
Fortunately, givers are never short of what they need.  They can be short of what they want, but are never short of what they need.