Many people have heard the fairy tale of the king who gets mad at the queen, who gets mad at the maid, who gets mad at the princess, who gets mad at the dog. There are embellishments but that is the gist of it.

 

This summer my twins made friends with a little girl from Canada. They played non stop for the three days they were together, mostly involving dolls. They have the one they got from the thrift store, and the girl across the street has three so the four girls made out just fine. But the girl from Canada kept saying she wished she owned one too. After she was gone the three girls made a pact to earn a hundred dollars to buy her one.

 

They fed a neighbor's fish and made the first chunk. Then they landed a cat feeding job and they were closer to their goal. One of them got the idea to have a lemonade stand and they started squeezing every lemon to be found on our little cul-de-sac. They made a cardboard sign and handed out fresh, if a bit thin lemonade for two dimes.  We moms replenished supplies and they added cookies to the menu. In all there were four days of selling refreshments to the locals. One afternoon, Hope said how fun it was to get to know the neighbors, and their licky dogs. I agreed.

 

Several people mentioned that they had bought lemonade and gotten a spontaneous hug to boot. None of the patrons knew the recipient of the doll but it still spread sweetness to see generosity in action. Several handed them a dollar and did not ask for change. One woman heard about it and missed the lemonade but saw them jumping on the trampoline and added her own contribution to the cause.

 

My own family was touched as well. Their brother said he had not spent that much money on his own girlfriend. I noticed generosity seeping into my own behavior over the next few days. I said yes to seconds on ice cream.

 

I try to stretch my capacity for generosity. i have gifted a few people with quilts over the years, and sometimes I get cold feet at the end.

 

Being generous in your marriage can be hard, especially when you are feeling short changed. But opening the gates of lavishness can wash away the score keeping. 

 

 

Freely you have received, freely give.