Giving me.

"The saint is capable of loving others even in their sin. For what he sees in all things and in all men is the object of the divine compassion. The saint, then, seeks not his own glory, but the glory of God. And in order that God may be glorified in all things, the saint wishes himself to be nothing but a pure instrument of the divine will. He wants himself to be simply a window through which God's mercy shines on the world." -Thomas Merton

"It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye."

"People first, and things second."

"I'm talking about a person who loves himself as being someone who realizes that you can only give away what you have, and so you damned well better work at getting something. You want to be the most educated, the most brilliant, the most exciting, the most versatile, the most creative individual in the world, because then you can give it away; and the only reason you have anything is to give it away." -Leo F. Buscaglia

Words from other people.

I'm a big fan of them.

Lately, these are some of the words I've been thinking about.

It's the holiday season and everyone is talking about what they are thankful for and buying Christmas presents and setting up lights and trees and ornaments. 

I love this time of the year and I have this constant warm glow inside of me.

And I love all these things, they put a smile on my face.

But I also like to remind myself of what's really important.

Something I've been trying to focus on lately is this idea of giving myself.

Not just presents and candy and hugs.

But giving me.

How do I give more of myself to people?

How do I give more love?

How do I give more time?

How do I give more joy?

There are so many things to give.

It seems like a "universal law," or whatever you may like to call it, that what you give away only increases more in your life.

While this is no reason to give things away, it does make you wonder why we hold so tightly to what we have.

All growth involves risk and giving things away is risky. 

It's not so risky to give someone a Christmas card, but it is a little risky to ask them how their day is.

It's not so risky to buy a TV for your family, but it is a little risky to have a heart-to-heart with your son.

These are the things that matter though. What's left at the end of the day aren't the things we own or even the earth. They are the things invisible to the eye. Our souls, our hearts, our connections, our love, our minds, our thoughts. What are we doing with those things?

Human connection and giving of ourselves is much more complicated and messy and terrifying than giving gifts. It's a lot of work. It takes a lot of dedication and time and commitment. It means realizing that people are always more important. 

I just want to remember that what I'm giving, this season and all year round, is much more important than what I'm getting.

And I want is to be a window or instrument or dump truck of all the things good in my life, of all the things that have changed me and all the things I have. I want to give "me" and all the "me-ness" I possess and hopefully I'll get something back, maybe something much greater.