Hello 11ers,
Thanks Lin. I think Lin's post is exactly why she see's 11s. A true 11er Lin is. Always helping. Natural good intentions. She gravitates toward the good.
For a while I've wanted to talk about giving. Last summer I had the most interesting experience in giving and as I approach 60 years old I'm sorry I didn't pick this up earlier in life.
I set up as a vendor at a local farmers market selling pottery. I made dozens of little covered jars and got a spot for the summer. After a few weeks I had made friends with a popcorn vendor and one weekend he offered me a free bag of caramel corn. Being more of a giver than a receiver I politely refused and paid for it myself.
The following week I was reading something about giving and I realized that I may have deprived the popcorn guy from doing something kind for another person. I got the popcorn guys email address and dropped him a note apologizing and thanking him for the effort. He replied that giving was only part of the process. It is better to give than receive but there is no shame in receiving. If someone gives and the recipient refuses then neither the giver nor the receiver benefit. If the receiver accepts what is given then both are blessed.
That's the long and short of it except just one thing. How is it that the giver is blessed? Because the universe has certain laws that we are bound by and what I have to say could easily be dismissed as nonsense or it could be pondered upon for the wisdom within.
For me, when I give, it's like putting currency into a cosmic vending machine. Sometimes it vends right away and sometimes it takes a while. But it always works. The odd thing is you don't always get what you want. Sometimes you get what you deserve which can often be better than what you think you want.
Here's a quick example. I was in a hardware store and the guy in front of me at the check out line dropped a 5 dollar bill. When he was done he walked away and I picked up the bill, got his attention and returned it to him. I got a thanks which was all I expected. Two or three days later I won $40.00 in the state lottery. Are the two connected? I wish I could prove it but I can't. Do I feel that the two are connected? I do.
This is how it could be for you too. You might give the right of way to a pedestrian on your way to the market and get the best parking spot available when you arrive.
Just so you know I not only wrote the book Sherpa but another titled Presents of Mind. When I was finishing the first book it dawned on me to donate the proceeds to charity. I did the same thing with Sherpa.
I have received a couple of small royalty checks form the sales of Sherpa of which I deposit in my bank account and then I draft a couple of checks and send them off to the Children's Research Hospitals as promised. Even with these pitifully small checks the cosmic vending machine is working overtime. In Sherpa I equate it with being swept away by an avalanche. And that's what has happened to me. I remember as I was writing the last few pages I could hear the avalanche heading toward me, gaining momentum and it did, it got me and I couldn't be happier. From one day to the next things happen for me. Sometimes it's something small and at other times you receive your dream come true. But something keeps the cosmic vending machine cranking out the good stuff.
And the correlation between this and being an 11er? For me it's purely cosmic. The only unifying thing is that like seeing 11 after and having the cosmic vending machine vend is the fact that they both happen too frequently to be coincidences.
So all I'm suggesting is to give. And be just as open to receiving. It may feel a little funny at first but now I accept whatever comes my way and I'm very thankful for all I have. (The cool thing is I know more stuff is coming my way. After all I'm caught up in an avalanche of good things.)
Put that in your pipe and smoke it!
11erSteve