A good friend of mine is studying the ‘pedagogy of small’. She’s looking at some ideas that people sometimes dismiss, but they are so important.
Even If They Are Small.
In today’s connected world it is possible to think BIG. Global, and even beyond. Pictures from the edges of the galaxy are not beyond our reach. Aim high, go far, but, what is the goal, and does it scale?
In connecting, there is a genuine and personal something – something to be given and/or something to be received. Not all situations have both, and it is possible to have a sliding scale combining these components.
There is something wonderful about a thing given or received, and either can be done intentionally or unintentionally. By design sometimes we can plan to impact others, as teachers we can be showers, doers, leaders, companions, peers, walking together. Sometimes just by being kind individuals, bowing gracefully to the humanity of others, we can give, simply by respecting others, acknowledging, listening, being present.
The impact of giving cannot be known, and the gift (if it is a gift) will leave us once it is out hands. If we hold on to it, then it is somehow not a gift.
What’s the point of having to always let go? To believe in the giving. To believe in the possibilities of people.
I think you are defining generosity. We here in the States lament that generosity has been extinguished from the vocabulary of public discourse. So, perhaps, the only way to stay sane is to retreat to the “small,” the intimate, the meaningful. To give without demand, without expectation.
Thanks for this post. Inspiring and, as Kathy says, empowering.
As I adjust to my new schedule, identity, purpose — no longer running a nonprofit, no longer “working” under the traditional sense of the word — I find myself, more and more, creating projects that only give. Of course I receive, too, but no longer am I thinking about money, or audience or “scale” as you put it. Only thinking about impact and being present. Easier to write than do.
Hope you are well. I just finished hearing your Debussy piece a second time. Wunderfull.
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The last two sentences are sooo empowering!