The Give Away

[Guest guest]

Florie:

 

I think that what Cynthia said has great resonance for me. When I

lived in the south we had many gatherings that culminated in a

" giveaway " where we exchanged something of great value to ourselves

with the other people present; in many cases people took jewelry off

their bodies, a fetish from their medicine bags, or something they

cherished from home. The exercise was not always to gift someone in

particular (although sometimes it did happen that we were honoring

someone with a giveaway), but to learn to give away things so that we

could be free to enjoy them rather than feel ownership, which implies

possessiveness, greed and jealousy.

 

Look around your personal space, at your altar; you may find that

something as simple as a warm scarf, the figure of a turtle, or a

special stone leaps out at you. You might also ask Dr. Lu if he has

any experience with bamboo, and if he would like some of yours. He may

have a special technique for getting what he needs without disturbing

the plants too much.

 

Personally, I love plants, but I have one of the blackest thumbs in

the world... I tend to either overwater or forget anything green that

requires maintenance. So I especially enjoy cut flowers, and pass

along the beautiful potted things that come my way, for their sake ;-)

My mother is especially gifted with plants, and I've seen many of my

bedraggled yellow offerings prosper in her hands... I guess I didn't

get that gene!

 

Blessings,

Crow

" Look for Rainbows in the Darkness "

 

, " Richard M. Gray, Ph.D. and Florence

Tomasulo Gray " <rmgray@m...> wrote:

> Thank you, Cynthia.

>

> Your idea seems to be an embodiment of Dr. Lu's generosity and an

excellent suggestion.

>

> Florie

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