The Value of Giving
How I became part of a thriving community by doing my part
When I am doing my morning attitude warm-ups for the day, one of the questions I ask myself is “what can I do to bring value to my community”.
A year and a half ago I moved to Puerto Rico. The only people I knew here were a friend who lives on the other side of the island, and my roommate who moved at the same time as me from Los Angeles.
I had only visited Puerto Rico one time a few months prior, and that was to check out whether it was energetically a match for me to move here.
I made my decision and moved.
Even though I had spent a lot of my life traveling the world, I had always lived in California. For many reasons, the communities I had been part of in LA were no longer supporting where I was going in my life. So this was a big decision and big move into the unknown. I had plenty of anxiety, stress, and waking up in a panic during the process, but I continued to move forward into my new life. I had a lot of help during my move from my friends in LA (thanks guys!).
It worked out far better than I could have imagined.
One of the greatest blessings are the amazing friends I’ve made here. The group of friends I became a part of are a super tight-knit community who have known each other for many years, but somehow it was like there was this spot just waiting for me. We all laugh about how I ended up becoming so much a part of this crazy group of friends.
I know that I have some good friends in Spirit who are setting things up in wonderful ways that I couldn’t even plan if I tried. So that is one major aspect to how this came about.
There is also the approach I take to the community I am part of. I look at how I can help, how I can add value to the group. I also get so much value from my friends, because they share of themselves and their value with me. It really becomes a wonderful and strong community when everyone comes from that place of sharing in the blessings, and sharing in the struggles too.
The recent hurricane is just one example of how we all supported each other. I was out sawing downed trees at my friends place (while being charmingly harassed by their very friendly horses), and using their washing machine for my clothes, and making my morning espresso at their house as they have solar power.
This is just one example, but the list goes on and on of how we all help each other out in our day to day lives.
Traveling with John-Roger for all those years, he would always stress that we were to leave a place better than we found it. Sometimes that means physically and sometimes just energetically, but the important thing is to approach where you are and what you are doing from that consciousness. He really engrained that in me.
Puerto Rico is my home here on this planet now, but there is nowhere on this planet that is my true home. I am just a visitor here, and so I would like to leave this place better than I found it. That is a daily, and moment to moment, action.
I encourage you to ask yourself what you can do for the people in your lives to give greater value, because when you do that you are making this place better, and the blessings will be returned to you in amazing and unforeseeable ways.
If you are interested in finding out more about working with Nat, respond to this newsletter or visit his website transcend.online
Hi Nat, Congratulations! I attended the Grief Summit and heard your last podcast. I love how you transmit your beautiful self when you talk about the ocean and surf. It has helped me a lot in my own 'mourning' - or the residuals of it after all I worked to become aware of "What has happened with me?" - to feel your enthusiasm and beautiful self. Good on you! Love, Sylvia Giussani.