When I was about 7 years old, I became a Brownie Guide.
"I promise to do my best, to do my duty to God, to serve the Queen, to help other people and do a good turn everyday."
( I periodically recite this to my kids, usually it's when Luke is wearing his Cub Scout shirt and it sparks a memory...I even do it complete with an English accent!)
So sometime in my short lived Brownie career, (I never went on to Girl Guides...) we had a service project for Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children. We were to bring a stuffed animal to donate...
I'm not sure if we were asked to donate a favorite one to make the giving even more meaningful, or if my mother asked me to donate a specific one, or if I was just a kind hearted child that ended up with regrets...
I remember distinctly dropping my small, soft, Winnie the Pooh stuffed animal into a black garbage bag during Brownie Guides in the school gymnasium.
I remember days later. I remember weeks later. I even remember years later.
I missed that Winnie the Pooh. It had been one of my favorite possessions.
Yet, I gave it away. I always wondered about who received it, and if they loved it as much as I had.
And so the memory begets a question.
Did that experience make me generous, kind and giving? Or am I stingy, unkind and selfish?
(Honestly, I think I'm a little of all of the above. But really, aren't we all?)
Least I can blame it on Winnie The Pooh!
What about you?
As I recall you were asked to give one of your own stuffed animals. You choose that because it was a favorite of yours. Kind of like giving someone your last Rolo. So I would have to say "generous" in answer to your question.
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