Generosity

As a child, my mom always drove home the importance of sharing with others, no matter how little you have, and being kind and generous. She also frequently reminded me that, no matter how bad things seem for me, there's always someone who is in a worse position -- and that's part of the reason that it's so important to share.

As an adult, I like to see myself as a giving and mostly selfless person, but I know that's not always the case. Too often, I get tangled up in what's fair and unfair and focus on myself, instead of others.

Today, I learned an incredibly valuable lesson in generosity and kindness and it's reminded me that I need to remember these two values myself.

Without going into too much detail, a friend decided that another friend and I were being wronged. He took it upon himself to try to right this wrong, even though it was not his place to do so and it was going to end up being less beneficial for him in the end. His reasoning? "Well, what's happening to you isn't fair, and while life is never fair, I can do my part to try to make things a little better for both of you." It brought tears to my eyes and when I asked him why he felt it was his place to try to make us feel better, especially when it was going to be less beneficial for him in the end, he simply told me that it was the right thing to do.

I was, and several hours later still am, humbled by his generosity. Of course, I turned down his offer becuase he deserves everything for himself and he and his fiancee can really use the benefit, but the offer was so very kind. Score one more for teaching me an incredible lesson and, once again, making me have faith in humankind!