Daily Doting: December 9, 2009

Today will be a quick one because I have a load of things to do (including writing my always-lengthy Things I Love Thursday) and I plan on spending most of my night watching A Charlie Brown Christmas for free on Hulu tonight. Short blog post, but huge message. Today’s daily morsel of quotation goodness is:

such pretty things

Mr. Churchill, you are so wise! The most rewarding things and moments in life are always the ones centered around making those around us happy – people we know and don’t know alike. Would you believe that at one point in my life, I actually believed that giving was a selfish act, designed to make ourselves feel good? What a misguided child I was. Giving feels good because giving IS good, and we are built to want to help others – yes, you are born with that instinct to jump in the lake after that drowning boy!

With Christmas shopping on everyone’s mind this time of the year, I think it’s especially important to keep this message of giving in the forefront of our noggins. Here is what I suggest: go the extra mile this season. Volunteer to prepare a meal for the homeless, collect blankets and socks and donate them to your local mission, spend some time with an underprivileged child, clean out your cabinets and take those cans of nonperishables to a shelter, or even better – decide to forgo all the holiday gifts this year and buy for a family in need instead. I guarantee it will make you feel more warm and fuzzy than even the softest set of pajamas.

One of my favorite non-profits, Do Something, has a great tool called Act Now that allows you to find local volunteer opportunities around your favorite cause, how much time you have to give, and how big a group you have volunteering. Check it out here.