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A Generous Spirit

January 17, 2010 By Michele Woodward Leave a Comment

This week, I was going to write about Dan Pink’s new book about motivation, Drive.

Then, I also considered writing about Brigid Schulte’s article in The Washington Post, about a busy working mom’s search for leisure time.

I also thought about writing an arch, sassy essay on New Year’s Resolutions.

But I couldn’t write those posts. They seem so inconsequential.

Because I can’t get Haiti out of my mind.

The scope of the loss there is so hard to grasp. The only way I’ve been able to understand it is like this: It’s as if Land Shark Stadium in Miami, filled to the rafters for the Super Bowl, collapsed and suddenly every single person in the stadium – players, refs, fans, vendors, women selling programs, beer guys, security guards – died.

And as if every single car in the parking lot were filled with people who were hurt by falling debris from the stadium, had no gas, no food, no water, and no where to go.

And everyone in Miami suddenly had no power, no police, no firemen, no nothing.

Imagine if we began burying people in a mass grave in the middle of the football field.

That’s what Haiti is like.

And so much else feels insignificant.

Last Friday as I watched the news coverage out of Port-au-Prince,  I found myself feeling much the same way I did on September 11, 2001. I live four miles from the Pentagon, and I knew someone on that plane. I knew people who worked at the Pentagon, and a security guard who saved lives. Firefighters just down the street were among the first responders. I saw the smoke, I smelled the jet fuel, I saw the scorch marks. The loss felt so heavy.

One hundred and twenty five souls died that day at the Pentagon. Almost 3,000 people died in New York, Pennsylvania and DC as a result of the 9-11 attack. Our attention has been grabbed by other recent situations. Nearly 4,500 soldiers have died in Iraq since 2003.  Eight hundred and fifty in Afghanistan.  Six thousand five hundred people died from swine flu in 2009, worldwide.

All of these instances have received understandable media coverage.

But Haiti’s death toll is almost 1000 times that of the Pentagon. More than thirty times the losses of 9-11. Twenty times the soldiers lost in Iraq. Fifteen times that lost to swine flu.

It is so big.

So what can we do? We can, and have, given to charitable organizations who are on the ground in Haiti, delivering basic supplies, medical assistance and coordinating recovery efforts. In just a few days, $12 million has been generated in ten dollar increments for the American Red Cross by text messaging alone.

We are a generous people.

And catastrophes tend to bring us together, and bring out the best in us.

So I have an idea.

What if we could keep that generosity going? Certainly to Haiti as it rebuilds.

But also to Flint, Michigan, as it recovers.

And to Schenectady and Siler City. And to Des Moines and Danville.

And to Main Street and to your very own street.

Amid our personal concerns about our financial health and prospects for the future, what if we made a commitment to keep on being as generous in the future as we are right now?

What if, as a business owner, you hired someone and accepted a slightly smaller profit margin for yourself?

What if, as a homeowner, you hired someone to repair your roof rather than get up on a ladder?

What if, as a corporation, you added just one percent to your workforce?

What if, as a bank, you lent money to people who will use it to create opportunity for others through employment?

What if, as a society, we figuratively kept texting each other $10 each day?

Why, we’d change everything.

Filed Under: Authenticity, Happier Living Tagged With: change, executive coach, feeling overwhelmed, generosity, Haiti, reframing thoughts

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Hiro Boga says

    January 17, 2010 at 9:53 pm

    Oh, Michele, I love this. The tragedy in Haiti has destroyed so many people’s lives. I love this reminder to nourish the spirit of generosity through our day to day choices and actions–to make giving, sharing and co-creating not just an event but a way of being in the world.

    Thank you so much!

    Love, Hiro

    Reply
  2. Scott Webb says

    January 18, 2010 at 12:52 am

    There is something very very big happening right now.

    This is a great post and the act of giving is very rewarding for everyone involved. I’ve only a little of the way into ‘ the power of giving’ book, but it’s so much like what you’ve mentioned.

    A massive shift is in the works.

    Reply
  3. DL Sellers says

    January 21, 2010 at 11:00 am

    Wonderful sentiments. I hope eyes and hearts are open to your message. ‘Cause I can be honest and say this:

    As one of the many Americans who lost full-time employment last year and is relying on unemployment compensation, the COBRA subsidy and the dwindling funds of a severance payment, I’m struggling. I recognize and appreciate that I am in a more fortunate position than many in the U.S., and I still struggle. Other than in the most extreme cases, what the people of Haiti have faced (even before the earthquake) is far, far, far more devastating and dehumanizing, beyond the comprehension even of what TV images and interviews can provide; I watch with immense pride as my country, blessed with so much, shares with those who have lost what little they had. And I still struggle.

    I struggle because I feel selfish. And I feel guilty that I feel selfish. Because the eagerness with which we are all — generously, unhesitatingly, lovingly — showering the people of Haiti with our dollars and goods is needed here too. Though we may be finding ways to keep a roof over our heads, food on the table, and our attitude just optimistic enough to face another day, we need you too.
    So I hope and pray, as we reach out to Haitians as we would family or friends and help replace the most basic of human needs and restore their resources — *as we should* — that we also turn to those who live closest to us, here at home. They need your generosity, your unselfish eagerness to lend a hand, and your confidence and support in rebounding and rebuilding, even as they relish their blessings.
    May Haiti’s wounds heal quickly, and may this mark a new, more stable and more prosperous path for the country and its citizens.

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Tweets that mention A Generous Spirit | lifeframeworks.com -- Topsy.com says:
    January 17, 2010 at 9:56 pm

    […] This post was mentioned on Twitter by HiroBoga and michelewoodward, Nu Corke. Nu Corke said: Nurturing the spirit of everyday generosity, from @michelewoodward: Haiti in context. A Generous Spirit http://bit.ly/8IzU2i […]

    Reply
  2. uberVU - social comments says:
    January 19, 2010 at 3:36 am

    Social comments and analytics for this post…

    This post was mentioned on Twitter by HiroBoga: Nurturing the spirit of everyday generosity, from @michelewoodward: Haiti in context. A Generous Spirit http://bit.ly/8IzU2i…

    Reply

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