9. Generosity and Positivity
Two memories come to mind when I think about generosity and positivity. Both are from my youth. First, generosity. Our church asked all parishioners to be generous, to put an envelope in the basket when the usher extended it down the pew. Back then, my parents had very little money, definitely few funds for anything extra. We had what we needed, but not much more. Putting three teenage kids through Catholic colleges simultaneously stretched Mom and Dad financially. Even I caused them to pay tuition because of my Catholic grade school. They still put that envelope in each Sunday’s collection. We also raised money for the church through events. I remember the Rice Bowl charity project as a response to world hunger. We supported these causes. My parents were a good example of generosity, particularly giving when you don’t have a lot extra.
Second is positivity. Positivity is about the face we present to the world. It may not seem as if it is something we are giving to others, but it can be. It is about being more than a pass-through carrier of circumstances, a conductor of anguish and despair. Positivity is about being a buffer or respite for those who may be going through the worst of life.
My memory here is of my Catholic grade school and the focus of my teachers on self-control. Our teachers expected us to be more than responders to stimuli. Occasionally, we were asked to be completely still for long minutes at a time, to sit silent, unmoving. This was not torture; it was our teachers asking us to get a handle on ourselves. They wanted us to develop the skill of self-discipline. This relates to positivity in that it taught me that there is a control point between stimulus and response. We are the control point. We can respond in a multitude of ways to any stimulus. Further, it matters how we choose to respond. A positive response, as long as it is not delusional, is preferable to a negative response.
In Natural Wonders, I wrote,
Positivity is more about how we influence others. We should be like cell phone chargers for others. We charge them up when we interact with them. After engaging with us, they come away feeling that they can do more, be more, than they thought they could. It is us simply making a positive mark, being a positive influence on others.
The common element of generosity and positivity is that they both involve giving of ourselves. Sometimes giving resources, time, energy, and emotion is hard. These are good values, and I think they fit with the Life Ethic. If we were all generous and positive, the world would likely be a better place for life to exist and grow.
