when less really is more

Tax season is a formal record of my yearlong giving, whether it’s to the government or to more altruistic entities. It’s the time all Americans gather their receipts to assess what went where. It’s a snapshot of where our giving has gone. I am currently involved in two fund raising initiatives raising money to build facilities that will bring spiritual benefits to thousands of people for generations to come. During my training they covered the different ways of giving. Legacy giving was one of them.  Our ears perk up when we hear that word: legacy. It signifies something bigger than any of us, something that has eternal value and has broken free of the bounds of time; the gift that costs you nothing. At the other end of the spectrum was the here-and-now philosophy which one of my friends so aptly summarized as “Do your giving while you’re living so you’re knowing where it’s going.” Donating your money, land, or resources to something that lasts forever is a tremendous return on investment. My father was adamant that “giving” was a dirty word. Instead, he countered, we should call it “returning”, since everything that passes through our hands on this mortal coil is transient and on loan anyway. We are preoccupied with time, but the only things that last are those that are timeless. We obsess over becoming better versions of ourselves, but the only person who touches hearts is an individual who is selfless. Businesses are obsessed with cutting cost and price, yet the top category of perceived value is something that’s priceless.  And when we search for solutions we read the wisdom of the ages, not the wisdom of the week, in order to fill our minds with something timeless. Keep your focus on these qualities and you’ll wind up with more than our limited minds could possibly imagine!