Giving In the Storm of Taking

The Issue

A young friend who cares dearly about my well-being and checks on me almost daily, send me a very inspirational video. It talks about the value and rewards of giving: In Giving We Receive. Now, there is something to think about: Giving!

It is an act of benevolence as old as humanity itself. It starts, in the early forms of society, right at home or the family unit when we give selflessly to our children as we nurture them. Then, as society grew and became more complex, giving extends beyond the family unit to utter strangers without seeming motivation or motive.

Even amidst the seeming cruelty that engulfs the globe (if we are to believe the media), giving is everywhere. Why do we give, selflessly? What motivates us? Yes, there might be an expectation for something in return, but is it always? Is it intrinsically human to give?

The Message

These are questions for another post. Here are the contents of the video my young friend shared with me (the author/narrator is unidentified):

Few years ago, I was walking with a friend in a Muir Woods which is just close to San Francisco. It’s a redwood forest. We came upon a park ranger. He was explaining to some tourists the secret of the forest. He told them the sequía and redwood trees are the largest trees on the planet. Some of them are hundreds or even thousands of years old. But interestingly, their roots do not grow deep. And then he told that these trees, have been standing for centuries and centuries, enduring massive windstorms, frigid blizzards, devastating earthquakes. And without deep roots, how did they keep standing?

Then the ranger paused so we could ponder this mystery. And then he went on to reveal to us, the underground secret of the redwood forest. And being from the 60’s I like underground things so I was very attentive. He said that the roots under the ground, reach outward seeking the roots of other redwood trees. When they meet, they intertwine making a permanent bond with each other. In this way, all the redwood trees in the entire forest are either directly or indirectly, giving support to each other. Unity is their strength. They reach out to care for each other. Even a little new born baby redwood, it’s little tiny roots, are given shelter by the ancient giants.

In the Muir Woods, nature is giving humanity a very crucial lesson, that our real strength is in our willingness to care for and support each other. We are caretakers of divine property. Wisdom is to understand this simple universal principle that in giving, we receive. By getting things, we make a living. By giving, we make a life. The spiritual evolution of a society can be understood when.people love people and use things. But in today’s world, it’s just the opposite. People use people, and they love things.

Our Nature; Our Mission

But there are those human beings in the world, true to the nature of humanity, who, just like the redwood trees’ roots, reach out to each other to nurture generosity, to nurture giving, in order to ensure the resilience of human good against the storms and whirlwinds of adversity. The internet and communication platforms are the roots that sustain that bond and are used in a few but formidable cases for mutual prosperity across the globe. Think of the Wealthy Affiliate Community … We pay it forward. Why?

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Awesomeness!

Mojalefa.