An old man walked up a shore littered with thousands of starfish, beached and dying after a storm. A young man was picking them up and flinging them back into the ocean. "Why do you bother?" the old man scofted. "You're not saving enough to make a difference." The young man picked up another starfish and sent it spinning back to the water. "Made a difference to that one," he said.

Thursday, January 2, 2014

Why I Started Giving Daily


In late 2010 I read the book 29 Gifts. It was an amazing book of a young women's battle to regain control over her life after being diagnosed with MS. In the book, the author, Cami Walker challenges everyone to go through the 29 day giving journey. I never really understood why 29 days, so it became my goal to go beyond the 29 days and do an entire year of giving.  
I gave a daily gift for 522 consecutive days.  Why 522?  Read here to see how the journey ended. http://www.1makingadifference.blogspot.com/2012/07/where-one-journey-endsanother-begins.html

After my journey ended I took a little  time to reflect what the journey meant and I knew I had to keep giving.  I would say on most days from then until now I gave a gift. I just wasn’t good at tracking and sharing.  As the end of 2013 drew near I kept getting this feeling I needed to make a commitment to the daily giving and to share what I was doing.  It has always been my hope that the giving isn’t about me and my gifts, but that my stories motivate others to get involved and start giving.  There are so many ways to give and I’m a big believer that sometimes the smallest of gifts have the biggest impact.  A simple smile to a stranger could change the course of their entire day.  An encouraging text or email to a friend may come at a time when they need it the most. 

I would love for you to come on this journey with me; share with me and others how you are a making a difference, as I truly believe, 1 can make a difference but many can change the world.

Blessings,
Stephanie

2 comments:

  1. I'm willing to bet you did give a gift that day in Herndon! A smile or compliment or even a little favor to someone at work. Working all those hours is a gift to your team and to Cisco!

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  2. None that I can remember so I wouldn't count it. I'm sure I did smile though:) Thanks for the kind words!

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