by Charles “Tom” B., CLF member currently incarcerated in Tucson, Arizona
Stripped of material possessions, writing these words in a noisy, overcrowded prison dormitory, I ask myself what gift I can possibly give. Even the words I offer sometimes seem trite and meaningless.
As I go deeper into this subject of simple gifts, though, I am reminded that life is not a problem to be solved. It is a gift to be opened. There are so many gifts in a single life—a word of kindness, the song of a bird, the companionship of friends, a strain of music, the sun on our face, the color of a sunset.
Many of the gifts we offer to others are small, ordinary things: a cordial greeting, a comforting visit, a gentle touch. We give what we have. If we have humor, then laughter is our gift. If we can cook, then food is our gift. If we can make music or hold a hand or listen well, these are our gifts. The currency of our kindness flows from what we are, what we love.
If we are preoccupied with what is missing and what is broken and wrong, we lose the harvest of all these small gifts, piled one upon another, that accumulate without our acknowledging them. If we become more aware of the blessings of a single day, it will not erase our sorrows, but it will help us remember how strong and rich we can be even in the midst of suffering.
Every gift is a drop of water on a stone; every kindness helps us remain helpful and balanced. We thrive as we bring what we have and offer it at the family table.
I often feel that I have so little to offer. But then I remember that a gift is like a seed. If I wait until the seed becomes a tree before I offer it, I will wait and wait, and the seed will die from lack of planting. The miracle is not just the gift; the miracle is in the offering.
However large or small, dramatic or simple, if we ignore or suppress our offering, something deep and vital within will wither and die. If we lovingly offer our gift, we will experience what Gandhi so beautifully described—“The fragrance remains in the hand that gives the rose.”
Church of the Larger Fellowship (CLF), 25 Beacon Street, Boston, MA 02108-2823, U.S.
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