Holiday Greetings: The Gift of Giving
Greensboro: I must confess, over the years I’ve become less enamored with the holiday season. Even in the midst of this financial crisis retailers began their “Christmas” marketing well before Thanksgiving. I know I’m not alone.
Yet, although annoyed, I keep finding myself swept up in it; “Did we get a present for Mary?” “Oh my gosh, I think we forgot to send a card to the Growlers.” “So honey, what do you want for Christmas?” and the beat goes on.
Which leads me to a gift I received via an article by Tara Parker-Pope in the December 1st article in the New York Times titled “In a Month of Giving, a Healthy Reward.” Parker-Pope writes about Cami Walker, diagnosed with multiple sclerosis three years ago and how her “health and spirits plummeted – until she got an unusual prescription from a holistic health educator.”
Ms. Walker’s treatment was to give a gift a day for 29 days – simple thoughtful acts of kindness, such as making a supportive phone call or giving a flower to a stranger. It didn’t cure her illness, but it appears to have had a remarkable effect on her quality of life. She is now more mobile and less dependent on medication and has written about her journey in a book similarly titled, “29 Gifts: How a Month of Giving Can Change Your Life” and created a very persuasive website, 29gifts.org that will help you become a giver.
But for those doubters out there, science upholds Ms. Walker’s holistic health educator. Studies at major universities support the premise that there is a positive physiological impact when we become less self-centered; simple random acts of kindness shift focus from ourselves, to helping others.
Parker-Pope cites a study of 150 heart patients where researchers found that people in the study with more “self-references” (those who were more self-absorbed) had more serious heart problems and performed worse on the treadmill tests.
Selfishly, the idea of writing this holiday message caused me pangs of guilt. Why? Because I thought I could easily perform one act of kindness a day without keeping a journal. Alas, my acts of kindness have strayed, albeit only slightly.
Now sitting on my desk is a spiral notebook that I’ve labeled “Kindness Journal.” My intention is to document these daily acts of kindness, which hopefully will make me a better person, with the ancillary benefit – a positive impact on my physiology.
You can do the same. To me this goes far beyond the holiday season or any structured religious services, because when it becomes a personal habit, it truly is a gift that keeps giving. Visit Ms. Walker’s Web site, read her book, or better yet, get your spiral notebook and label it “Kindness Journal” and let’s start the giving habit today.
Happy Holidays!
Yet, although annoyed, I keep finding myself swept up in it; “Did we get a present for Mary?” “Oh my gosh, I think we forgot to send a card to the Growlers.” “So honey, what do you want for Christmas?” and the beat goes on.
Which leads me to a gift I received via an article by Tara Parker-Pope in the December 1st article in the New York Times titled “In a Month of Giving, a Healthy Reward.” Parker-Pope writes about Cami Walker, diagnosed with multiple sclerosis three years ago and how her “health and spirits plummeted – until she got an unusual prescription from a holistic health educator.”
Ms. Walker’s treatment was to give a gift a day for 29 days – simple thoughtful acts of kindness, such as making a supportive phone call or giving a flower to a stranger. It didn’t cure her illness, but it appears to have had a remarkable effect on her quality of life. She is now more mobile and less dependent on medication and has written about her journey in a book similarly titled, “29 Gifts: How a Month of Giving Can Change Your Life” and created a very persuasive website, 29gifts.org that will help you become a giver.
But for those doubters out there, science upholds Ms. Walker’s holistic health educator. Studies at major universities support the premise that there is a positive physiological impact when we become less self-centered; simple random acts of kindness shift focus from ourselves, to helping others.
Parker-Pope cites a study of 150 heart patients where researchers found that people in the study with more “self-references” (those who were more self-absorbed) had more serious heart problems and performed worse on the treadmill tests.
Selfishly, the idea of writing this holiday message caused me pangs of guilt. Why? Because I thought I could easily perform one act of kindness a day without keeping a journal. Alas, my acts of kindness have strayed, albeit only slightly.
Now sitting on my desk is a spiral notebook that I’ve labeled “Kindness Journal.” My intention is to document these daily acts of kindness, which hopefully will make me a better person, with the ancillary benefit – a positive impact on my physiology.
You can do the same. To me this goes far beyond the holiday season or any structured religious services, because when it becomes a personal habit, it truly is a gift that keeps giving. Visit Ms. Walker’s Web site, read her book, or better yet, get your spiral notebook and label it “Kindness Journal” and let’s start the giving habit today.
Happy Holidays!
posted by Matt Oechsli at
4:46 PM
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