Happy people generally are more forgiving, helpful and charitable, have better self-control and are more tolerant of frustration than unhappy people, while unhappy people are more often withdrawn, defensive, antagonistic and self-absorbed. Oscar Wilde observed, “One is not always happy when one is good; but one is always good when one is happy”.
What do you think of the above statement by Gretchen Rubin and Oscar Wilde?
What can you do today to make yourself feel happier? (Other than to call or on- line chat with me of course) 😉
Giving anonymously always gives me a bit of a thrill and boosts my spirits. Giving without expecting anything in return and giving in secret or randomly makes me happier than giving when it is expected. This isn’t to say I don’t give when it is expected as that will then become about myself and not about the recipient.
Tony’s story …
Tony shared with me one day a few years ago back in California that he was in a grocery store when he felt compelled to give to a lady with a baby in a stroller and two toddlers in tow. He felt the energy surrounding this family as an energy that he described as “struggling”. He could tell by the way that they were dressed and the hunched over weathered appearance that the Mom held that they probably didn’t have a lot of money to spend on luxuries or groceries for the week.
He waited for an opportune moment to approach the stroller without looking like a creeper. He knelt down near the stroller to reach for something on the bottom shelf in the grocery store and slipped a $20 bill into the basket of the stroller. The Mom was unaware and he was happy. This kind act of nature gave him a lift to his heart and soul that lasted days knowing that on that day or another day she would find it! This was just one of his many times of giving in secret with the recipient unaware of his good nature.
Ways to give anonymously if giving this way brings you happiness:
- Paying for the person behind you in the toll booth. They usually do pass you and give you a thumbs up or a wave, to say ‘thanks’ but I still call this anonymous giving.
- Paying for the person’s drink in the car behind you in the McDonalds drive through.
- Dropping a handwritten card at somebody’s door that you know is lonely, or leaving a bouquet of flowers.
- Buy a store bought pie that is sealed in a grocery store box with a receipt. Leave a note attached and leave it on somebody’s desk at work, or at their home. Try to avoid a homemade cake or brownies as they might be wary of eating something as they don’t know whether it is laced with stuff or safe to eat. I also mention leaving the receipt so they know it has been bought recently.
Does anybody have any suggestions that I might not have thought about that you have used or heard of somebody else using?
Can’t wait to hear them!
Reverend Claire
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