It’s time to offer the invitation,
make the meaningful connection, and
set generosity loose on your street.

It’s easy in the middle of our days, to quiet close the door behind us. Easy to hide away or hold back from putting ourselves out into the depths of community – because putting ourselves out there often feels like risk.

What if I offer to help and it takes too much of my time?
What if I invite a family to dinner and they say no thanks?
What if we start giving…….and wind up with little left for ourselves?

But withholding – actually – is risk. It’s a risk when we live our days from a place of scarcity, forever protecting every last bit we have, resisting any outpouring. And it’s exhausting; it’s a slow walk to a dead end.

Consider, though, the way life opens up and expands when we let go of perceived risks, let go of the fear we’ll run out, and start looking for ways to connect to others, offer a friendly hand, live shoulder to shoulder. Instead of the energy lost in controlling and protecting we are awash with something fresh and new.

Imagine a street where driveways and front stoops become open-invite hangouts, firewood is suprise-delivered on a cold morning, recipes are doubled and dropped off, and thoughtful questions follow casual greetings when you pass on the street.

SUDDENLY: Abundance

And in these acts of generosity, change will reverberate on both sides. It is expansive, reciprocal, freeing. Because to give is to remember you’re not empty, alone, not without an offering. To receive is to remember you aren’t a superhero. And to love is to remember you belong here.

~Magnolia Journal issue no.20|forward motion