CATALYST NEWS

Eva Dahm, CPCC, MA

March, 2007

Dedicated to your growth and exploration.

A GENEROUS SPIRIT

Do you consider yourself to be generous? Do you know others who are generous? What does generosity mean? I'm thinking of generous in the form of someone of spirit: a person who is open, trusting, giving of their time, energy and resources. So it's not only about money. It's more about presenting an open-armed vulnerable energy to the world.

What is the value of this approach? For one thing you usually get back what you give to others. So when you are generous, you will receive. If you give love and kindness, they will come back to you.

I am always motivated to do favors for others-getting a cart for an older person, reaching groceries for a wheelchair-bound shopper, carrying a baby seat on to a plane for a new Mom. So last week when a lady with a snow plow on her pickup truck offered to clear the last ten feet of my drive, I was not surprised.

HOW YOU SEE THE WORLD?

Since our beliefs create the filters that we use to interpret the world we see, your perspective is all important. When I view the world as a place of safety and abundance, I know I am always taken care of. There is no scarcity of love or friendship or money. A generous view of the world means there is plenty to go around. And the world proves our view to be the "right one" over and over. (Because we see what we believe.)

I'm sure you've heard what we focus on is what increases in our lives. Paying attention to something increases the energy there. We see even more occurrences of generosity when we place our concentration on it. In yoga when we are stretching a muscle, we focus on sending energy and relaxing the muscle. When I have a headache, I focus on sending oxygen and blood to the area and it disappears.

A Course in Miracles explains that our filters not only impact what we see in the world but who we are. "Every response you make is determined by what you think you are, and what you want to be IS what you think you are. What you want to be, then, must determine every response you make."

CHOOSE TO BE GENEROUS

Sometimes a generous spirit says the exact comment you need to brighten your day. Sometimes she listens with empathy when you need to vent but doesn't make the situation worse. Perhaps he asks how your family is now, remembering a recent illness. A generous, loving person will wish you well on a birthday or give you sympathy on a loss.

How generous are you? Do you take the time to speak, call or write? Thoughts are great and prayers are effective. When you can't reach out verbally or physically, at least pray or send good thoughts to your loved ones and friends.

The key is to hold an intention of sending love and support. I regularly send love to my clients. I am convinced these positive, high-energy thought contribute to their changes and growth.

And when someone acts in a not so nice way, we still offer love according to the Course in Miracles. "When a brother acts insanely, he is offering you an opportunity to bless him. You need the blessing you can offer him. There is no way for you to have it except by giving it."

STARTING A MOVEMENT--MICROLENDING

Sometimes generosity leads to a business idea or to whole service movement. Mohammed Yunus in Bangladesh discovered craftspeople who could not sell their own products because they needed a wagon or a way to deliver them to the market. Some small practical issue kept them relying on others and not growing. Mohammed tried to get small loans from banks and failed. He began what is now known as microlending. His Grameen Bank gives small loans to local people who quickly pay them back and grow their businesses. It only takes $5000 to sponsor a village bank!
"This effort goes by several names: microfinance, microlending, and microcredit. The people who benefit are called microentrepreneurs. Support comes from individuals, banks, religious organizations and other nonprofits, foundations, governments, and the World Bank. Donors, investors, and people who work in this field are motivated by a vision of a world where the devastating effects of poverty "no longer cripple the chances of individuals and families to sustain themselves, thrive, and contribute their talents to the world in which they live-where all people have a fair chance at success," (grass-roots advocacy organization Results)."--Dorothy May Emerson, The Microcredit Revolution
Generosity is also giving without expectation of return. There may be a return, but it is not expected. And frequently the return will be from a different source that the giving. The always happens in my marketing. I may place my energy in a networking event or class. Then the clients appear from another source. It's about my energy going out into the world requesting clients. Then the Universe responds.

Try on your generous spirit today. Give a smile or a hello. Wave as you let a driver in ahead of your car. Let's change our world one smile at a time.

A Course in Miracles, Foundation for Inner Peace, 1975.

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