I broke one of my rules today and I already regret it.

I was walking back home from the grocery store and was picking up some of the litter on the side of the road. This is normal for me but very uncommon in my neighborhood. Anyway, a man was walking by and came up to me and wanted to give me some money. I resisted, saying I did not need it and even showed him my wallet full of cash. He insisted and I took the money and promised to pass it on to someone who needed it more.

My rule, the rule I broke is “when someone wants to give you a gift, you take it and say thank you.” You may not see how I broke the rule, so, I will explain. Sometimes accepting a gift is as much a gift as the giving a gift. Giving gifts and helping others brings joy to some people and if you don’t graciously accept the gift, you diminish their joy. My pride interfered in my gracious acceptance of the man's gift and maybe diminished his joy. Much better would have let him believe that he just helped someone who really needed help.

Bring “joy to the world”

TEK