To Prajna on giving and receiving

[Guest guest]

Prajna wrote:

 

We had a house fire when I was eight or nine, and we

lost everything. The red cross came and brought us all

these little things you would never think of needing

in an emergency, like towels. When I returned to

school, all the kids from my class had brought a

stuffed animal, toy or book for me. People came and

brought us dinner, and gave us bedding and air

mattresses. It made such an impression on me, what it feels like

to be on the receiving end of charity...

 

 

Dear Prajna ~ thank you for sharing this wonderful and pertinent story. I

know some of what you mean. When I was little, living in Maryland, there was a

big hurricane. It plowed a wide swath through the east coast, and I remember

my father, who worked for the telephone company, being called to another state

to fix the telephone polls. While the hurricane passed, we hid in our

basement; it was terrifying and yet so small compared with Katrina. (And, for

some

reason, I wish they wouldn't give hurricanes real names, be they female or

male...in some way it personalizes something that is dreadfully destructive.)

We had one of the only gas stoves in the neighborhood, so some of our

neighbors came over to cook their dinner on our stove. So I was a bit on the

other

end, my mother sharing one thing we had with others. I believe it is a very

good feeling to be on either side of giving.

 

Jai Jai Ma ~ Linda