"Give - To Get Back"

Friends,

Greetings, Good day & Thank you for your presence here.

My second blog & I am very excited to share my thoughts about the topic which is close to my heart "Give - to get back"!

A famous quote by Winston Churchill constitutes the intentions of this blog “We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give.”

What according to you is giving? Lot of thoughts run by when a question of this kind hovers around, we might think "Giving" as an act of donating, helping, lending or simply giving something to somebody anticipating some returns. Well, I am here to share a different view.  "Giving" is & should be a moral responsibility.

According to me "Giving" should be crowned the sacred most feeling in the modern world. We have reached a stage where "Giving" is one of the ways that will bring back the benefits you are seeking from this life & the world.

Giving - could be a help that you render to the one in need, sharing some of your things with your friends & family, sharing knowledge & empowering more people, or it could also mean creating opportunities for many. There are multiple ways you can give back to the world.

I personally believe in the power of people. As “ONE WORLD” if we all join hands & support the one in need - we will start the leap towards a better world than today! Lifestyle affordability in today’s world has increasingly become challenging & competitive. There is stronger need today than ever to create an atmosphere around for each of us to Live, Laugh & Love unconditionally!

Allow me to provoke a thought in your mind & heart today, ask yourself - Do you feel blessed to be standing in the position of giving & not on the other side? We may never get close to actually understand the feeling of what it means to wait for a helping hand to come by.

Friends, we can transform the living of many by doing tiny little contributions to this world. By contributions I do not necessarily mean money, but you can share knowledge, skills, create opportunities for many and make their lives beautiful & self-sustained.

We all get inspired by Leaders, stories, examples! My inspiration comes from the mere fact that I was fortunate to avail right education & knowledge of inspiration comes to me through this channel.

We know the likes of Mother Teresa, Mahatma Gandhi, Nelson Mandela and many more great leaders only because we were fortunate to get educated & learn about them. In today’s world so many sporting icons, actors, businessmen, leaders often support & standby for many good causes - it’s not like they are not busy! They are super busy - yes, maybe they make more than most of us, but who is asking for a defined contribution or money. A contribution made in any form to better the lives of many others is in itself a good start.

Hoping to have imbibed some thoughts of "Giving" in you, let me now address the most likely question that may arise in your mind by looking at the topic of this blog "Give - to get back". So, what actually do we get back when we "Give?"

Yes, you guessed it right - happiness, satisfaction & most importantly, it helps you stay grounded in life. Friends, are these not the things we want out of our lives & this world?

Who said being happy, satisfied and grounded in life is a hard nirvana to achieve? It is very simple - yes, trust me it is very simple to achieve this in Life! No? You don't agree with me - well try "Giving something back to the world" - and see what you get back in return! Introspect & I am sure you will find the happiness, satisfaction & gratitude you were always seeking.

Let me share a real incident: I was on my way to railway station & was in this Auto-Rickshaw, the driver was very friendly, seemed hard working and we happened to discuss our Life stories along our ride. During the conversation I was told that he had to ask his son recently not to pursue studies further, he needed his son to work and contribute money for better living as they were struggling to comply with price increase in food commodity. I was deeply shaken to know that earning bread and butter is sometimes so difficult for few & we sometimes waste so much of money in the name of lavish living. What kind of equality of life we live in today’s world? –

I decided to do something, I spoke to this auto driver & brainwashed him to make sure he understood how important it is for him as father to keep his son's education continued & what it could mean for their future good. He nodded his head in realization & agreed to get his kid back to school. I had some cash which I could give him for funding his books & fees for few months at the least. I was happy because he was considerate about my suggestions and was hoping he uses the money given in right spirit to enable education for his son.

Few weeks later, I received a call from an unknown number. Guess what, it was the same auto driver! He called me to thank for the help rendered – not much for the money, but for making him realize the importance of education. I was also delighted to know that his kid was back to school & aims to be an “Engineer” in future.

Friends - you cannot imagine the happiness & Satisfaction I felt by hearing to him, such a joy!

Spread happiness, knowledge & good culture to get back the same by this world. Don't forget what Mary Anne Radmacher once said: “As we work to create light for others, we naturally light our own way.”

When I meet people and discuss about “giving”, don't be mistaken - 90% of them are very happy to join you, everyone wants to contribute back to this world - the only reason most of us don’t make a start is because we tend to wait for someone to make a start, we all want to get associated with some organization, cause or community. My urge is for you to be the leader in starting these inspiration moments, you do not need to be led in such causes, you can lead from the front and "Make the difference".

Consider doing this: Close our eyes, imagine a dream world you want to live in - one where we all are equal, one where there is no differentiator of caste, creed or color, one where there is no rich or poor, one where there are only smiles all around the place, one where there are millions of shoulders to hold you when you are weak, one where there is hope and wisdom all around!

Don't most of us want to be part of such dream world? While most of it is fantasy, some of it is possible to attain in reality. It only means that there is stronger need for us to come together and make these moments of magic possible & live them to the fullest.

I have taken a pledge & hoping after reading this blog, I was able to inspire some of you to join the force in "Giving to this world" - not in the hope of getting back but in happiness of seeing more people happy.

You are unique and special, I am sure each one of you can contribute in your own way. Do what you can in your capacity, to make people around you Live, Laugh & Love! Remember we came empty handed in this world and we will go back empty handed. So, while we are here, let’s make it worthwhile for everyone around.

Thank you for patiently reading my blog, hope it inspires you to do more. If you have any views, comments, thoughts or incidents which you were part of - please feel free to drop a comment on this blog page or write to me at marc.austin999@gmail.com  

Happy Giving!

- Avi