Giving is the Reason for Living!

These few words have shaped the investment of my adult life as I have “worked” to help people discover the joy of giving.

Every year on Christmas Eve, Santa Claus came to my house around four ‘o clock in the afternoon carrying a sack full of gifts for my three brothers and me. For reasons not understood at the time, my dad was always running an errand about then, and the four of us were heard to exclaim, “Dad, you missed him again!” Then one year we quietly suggested to one another, “Do you think that dad . . .?” Apart from the homemade gifts for mom and dad, the big pillowcase sack was all about the four of us boys and the long list we had shared with Santa.

I am not certain when that all changed, but what a change it was! No longer was the giving season about me. It mattered not whether I received a gift at all, so I would simply ask for world peace. What mattered was that I paid close attention to what was on the lists of the ones I love. So it is again this season as I delight in giving rather than receiving, and enjoying the smiles and gratitude of those receiving the gifts I will give.

Have you discovered this joy that offers us a whole new way to look at the world and the difference we make, not only during the holidays, but every day all year long?  When did it happen for you? I wish you this life-changing happiness during this holiday season: “Giving is the reason for living!”

Steve Haschig, DARTS Development