UN Photo/Logan Abass
The habit of giving only enhances the desire to give.
- Walt Whitman
The recent tragedy of the Haiti earthquake has resulted in an amazing outpouring of generosity on the part of Americans. This has included charitable responses by aid organizations, medical and emergency rescue assistance and supplies, the US military lending its resources, and the contributions of countless private citizens. This is a bright spot in a bleak catastrophe, one that provides the potential for people’s generosity to keep growing.
The most recent total of financial giving for Haiti is $560,000,000. This is an astounding amount of generosity, especially when you consider that these donations are over and above people’s existing responsibilities and charitable gifts. This is $560 million dollars donated by Americans, most of which would not have been donated before the tragedy – which still continues. Hopefully the giving will also continue to sustain the effort until Haiti gains some rebuilding.
What does this mean for the average person (who may or may not be experiencing financial difficulty herself during this time)? What might she learn through responding to the Haiti earthquake disaster?
- She may understand in a new way that her money can be a blessing to someone else.
- She may feel as if, in the face of this unspeakable horror, that she can contribute to making the survivor’s lives better – even in a small way.
- She may use this as an opportunity to teach young people (her children or others’) about being generous.
- She may realize that, no matter how much or little she has, she has something to give to people in need.
- She may learn something about doing basic research to ensure her donations are made skillfully.
- She may understand that she has more resources than she thought.
Cynics may decry that human tragedy is needed to free up people’s generosity, that we are reactive givers instead of responsive givers. There may also be doubts about how well these donations can be managed to make the most difference. Concerns over the sovereignty of the Haitian people and government may arise as they are surrounded by aid efforts. Eventually there may be stories of mismanagement, and scam artists are already trying to take advantage of people’s desire to contribute.
Still, a door has opened in people’s hearts. Something is moving that was not moving before, and new levels of charity mean that some of those donors will discover something in this process. Neuroscience teaches us that as we do new things, our brain can develop new neural-pathways, new links, to accommodate those actions. Each new action is an opportunity. In this case, hundreds of thousands of opportunities to grow in our generosity have occurred.
Nothing, no amount of money or aid or support, will undo the terrible devastation, the hundreds of thousands of lives lost, the actual collapse of the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. The good things that may grow out of the Haiti Earthquake are incidental and will be shadowed into darkness by the suffering the Haitians are enduring. Still it is worthwhile to keep our spirits up, and theirs as much as we can by noticing any bright spots in the grief. To me, the generosity of thousands of Americans like you is a bright spot which bodes well for our future.
The practice of generosity is about creating space.
We see our limits and we extend them continuously,
which creates an expansiveness and spaciousness of mind that’s deeply composed.
- Sharon Salzburg