MY SPOON MAY BE TOO SMALL

 


"we only have what we give.”

Isabel Allende

 

None of us is rich enough to eradicate the poverty in this world. The biggest Foundations and Charities in this world have been able to do only so much… Poverty, hunger, deprivation still run rampantly.

Now, the Poverty shows up in differs avatars. There is poverty of mind, heart and soul, too. Lack of love is poverty… Loneliness is poverty… Lack of self-confidence is poverty… Distrust and envy are forms of poverty… Poor physical health is poverty. And, yes, lack of money – hunger and homelessness - is poverty.

I have hardly done any financial charity. A few rupees which I may have given, now and then, are like casting  drops of water in a vast ocean. Putting it inversely, it’s like trying to empty the ocean – the ocean of poverty – with a teaspoon!

It can be overwhelming!

But, each one of us has been blessed with our own special wealth. We may be poor in terms of money; but, we may be wealthy in terms of other forms of wealth. So, it’s possible for all of us do reach out to the needy… Do our bit. Not doing anything at all for anyone is the poverty of the spirit.

“No one has become poor by giving,” wrote Anne Frank in her diary. This statement is very profound. If we think, that by giving what we have we become poor, we suffer from the poverty of the spirit. For, as Isabel Allende says, “We only have what we give.”

Let’s read that again: “We only have what we give!”

You and I may not be financially rich like a Bill Gates, a Warren Buffet or an Azim Premji. We need not be to ‘give’, to ‘help’. As I said, Poverty shows up in different forms. I have become conscious of my own wealth – being able to teach and write. So, every time I send out a small post, or teach a needy student, what I am really doing is – ‘giving’… trying to eradicate the poverty of mind, heart and spirit. I am aware of the fact, that the ocean is vast and my spoon is too small. But, then, is that not the only way to ‘give’… to do my bit?



Feeling of usefulness comes from our little acts of giving. True, ‘giving’ doesn’t come from what we have. It’s the other way around: We only have what we give!

Let’s reflect on it, again.

 

GERALD D’CUNHA

 

Pic.: pixabay

 

Video: Kahlil Gibran (The Prophet) itisnowforever

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