I Still Want a Deal
Do you want a deal?
The tail end of November is a bustle of deal-motivated shoppers, some I-don't-know-what-to-get-so-and-so-but-I-still-want-a-deal shoppers, and a couple adrenaline junkie shoppers who just want to be a part of the chaos surrounding a bunch of deals.
My family was the adrenaline junkie shoppers who just wanted to be a part of the chaos surrounding a bunch of deals.
After dinner, we would stay at the table and go through all the magazines and ads that came in the mail that month, constructing our game plan (and often multiple backup plans) for the coming night. Then we'd bundle up and head out.
To us, this was our family bonding. We get that it's a little strange, but it was a blast!
Back then, I don't think I had ever heard of Giving Tuesday. I had barely heard of Cyber Monday. What was the big deal anyways? We were doing all this to get gifts to GIVE them away!
What I didn't take time to think about then, was that giving to people I love and giving to someone in need are wildly different types of giving.
Break down the word, "thanksgiving" and it's really just thanking and giving, right?
Sure, I probably said, "thank you" at the checkout, and sure, I did give many of the gifts I bought that day away. But was I embodying the foundation of those words? Was my life a reflection of a heart centered in gratitude and generosity? How was that touching those that really needed it?
You might already notice that Giving Tuesday comes after all the deal-shopping days, but why? Why is giving to someone in need secondary or even tertiary to giving something for fun?
It doesn't have to be.
You can be grateful for the blessings of your life by allowing that gratitude to overflow from you into something that will change lives and communities and generations for the better.
Don't let it be an afterthought.
. . .
So, where's that deal element?
I can't think of a better deal than that!