Give It Away

Holidays were incredibly restful this year. I turned off the phone, didn't check my email. All good.

Last Sunday, I helped organize a New Year's party for the newest community of refugees in our city. Karen refugees from the Thai-Burmese border. Some of them have been in refugee camps for over ten years. They are an incredibly resilient group of people, and I have enjoyed my interactions with them over the past couple of months.

The children are well-behaved - artistic - quick learners. The people have readily identified what they need as a community to move forward. I wish I had more time to work with them directly and could spend less time on writing proposals.

One of my staff members organized a Christmas present drive for the community (there are over 150 Karen people in the city now). She left for sabattical in November and asked me to take on the remaining five families and nine singles. I sent an email out to - um maybe six? - of my friends asking them for "lightly used or new stuff" that they don't use in their homes that I could make into packages.

I was overwhelmed with the amount of things that ended up in my possession. Of course, my friends emailed other friends, and voila - more than enough gifts for everyone. Nice things too. People are so generous.

I was shocked with the amount of things I pilfered from my own little two-bedroom condo. Why do I hold on to these things? What do they mean to me?

As I start the new year, I ask myself the same question .... what else am I holding onto - spiritually, philosophically, emotionally that maybe it's time to let go of? Goals that no longer apply, aspirations that aren't really mine, visions of myself of whom I should be that aren't really relevant?

Maybe instead of starting the new year with more things - like resolutions - we should start it off by giving up something. What would you like to give away?