MFT Gives Back – Give Your Time
With Thanksgiving looming this week for our American followers, many of our minds are turned toward thankfulness. Often our thankfulness spills forth into giving of ourselves.
We’ve shared a few ways to give back to others this month — from Blessing Bags for the Homeless to Celebrating Those Who Serve to Sharing Our Passion With Others, and what we’ve found is that giving back feels good. It’s something we all could use a little bit of these days.
Our post on November 12th garnered a lot of great ideas from those who commented. Carolyn said, “Thank you for inspiring me to give to my local Children’s hospital! I will be giving to CHOA here in Atlanta, GA.” And Jeanette Robertson commented, “I give all papers and cardstock, bling, etc. [that] I haven’t used in a couple of years to an elementary school in my neighbourhood. The school budget has been slashed so much over the years that they have only pennies for art supplies.”
Our focus today is ways that we can Give Our Time.
Time is a valuable commodity, and we carefully choose how we use each minute of every day. With our busy schedules, making time to give of our time doesn’t come naturally, but when we can use that time to give back to others, the satisfaction is immense.
Last week the My Favorite Things staff handed out boxed meals as part of Deliver the Difference — a program with the intention of “empowering people to break the cycle of poverty through life skills and nutrition – locally, nationally and internationally.” Located in nearby Tavares, FL, it’s a great way for the staff to give back right in their own back yard.
Now it’s YOUR turn. We’d love for you to consider who you could share your time with. Perhaps it’s a neighbor whose leaves need to be raked or a child who could use some extra help with math. Maybe you could visit a retirement home and teach crafts or sing or just hold some lonely hands. Take a deep breath. Give of yourself. You’ll be glad you did!
Want even more ways to give back this month? Be sure to visit our friend Jennifer McGuire in her Share Handmade Kindness Challenge. Here’s a little bit of information about it from Jennifer herself:
Part of the joy of creating a handmade card or gift is giving it to someone to brighten their day—a simple act of kindness that can have a lasting impact. To encourage these acts of kindness, I am hosting the Share Handmade Kindness Challenge. Throughout the month of November, I’ll be challenging you to share an act of handmade kindness with someone. Whether you make a card, a note, or a treat… anything handmade counts. Each week there will be a new challenge on my website, as well as special guests, videos, giveaways, and more. I hope you will join me at jennifermcguireink.com and use the hashtag #sharehandmadekindess.
How have you given of your time, and what did you gain from the experience? We’d love to hear from you.