Completing the Circle of Good

“Do something for somebody every day for which you do not get paid.”
~ Albert Schweitzer

Lori Greenberg is a gifted lampwork bead artist and a moderator of a community of creatives called Watch Me Create. (I have been accepted as a contributor to that community, so watch for more on that opportunity in the future.) Lori was recently gifted a huge quantity of glass with the challenge that she needed to Pay It Forward. Her challenge has inspired all sorts of artists to see the current climate as a way to do something good for someone else.

As Lori states on her Bead Nerd post:

Something else you can do in a slow economy.
Consider doing something nice for someone else.
It feels good. It does good.
You now have the time.

What a novel idea.

When we are faced with uncertainties in our lives it is easy to curl into ourselves and play the WHY-ME card. The challenge then is to take stock of the blessings that do abound in your life and find a way to step outside of yourself. You gain so much more giving than by receiving. I am glad that Lori has been given this gift with this particular stipulation because she will be receiving the related gift of enriching others lives. I look forward to finding out more of what she does.

We celebrated Fat Tuesday this past week. My husband and I attended a party hosted by one of our favorite restaurants, Christian's Bistro (you have no idea how lucky we are to have this little gem), with my best friend Lynn and her husband. There were Hurricanes and gumbo and jambalaya and red beans and rice. There was authentic Dixieland jazz, boas, beads and voodoo dolls. There was even a tarot card reader.

But one of the things that we had fun with was to randomly choose a "spell" from a bucket. These spells were of the good variety with the promise of health, wealth and love.

The spell that I received was called "Blessed Bucks."

Blessed Bucks Money Spell
Take one or more dollar bills and write,
"May you be blessed with health, wealth & love"
on each. Then take the Blessed Bucks out into
the world and hide them in places where people will find them.
NEVER just drop one on the ground as it might look like merely an accident.

Great places to hide them:
Open a newspaper kiosk and slip one inside a newspaper,
especially the jobs section.
Carry a blue stick with you and go inside a grocery store.
Glue a Blessed Buck on the back of a food item, milk, or a box of diapers.

Lynn and I challenged each other on the spot to distribute one Blessed Buck per day during the 40 days of Lent. I have been recording where I have placed them just as a reminder of my progress, and I am trying to pick varied spots to ensure that they will be found by the widest range of people. I will also be making donations to my church's rice bowl collection, but it feels good to know that someone, somewhere will pick up that package of diapers or reach for that packet of sugar on the table at Applebee's or take home a plant to brighten someone's day and there will be an added bonus, a Blessed Buck wishing health, wealth and love on the recipient.

One of my goals this year is to donate one piece or ensemble each month in 2009. On Saturday I had the opportunity to donate both a finished jewelry set and a $100 gift certificate for a custom jewelry design to the Casino Night fundraiser for my high school alma mater. It turns out that a friend of mine won both donations. I am very excited to be working with this friend to make something special just for her. I feel good that my donation generated a lot of buzz for the raffles and helped to make this fundraiser a success while also exposing my art to a wider audience.

"In helping others, we shall help ourselves, for whatever good we give out completes the circle and comes back to us." ~ Flora Edwards

What are you doing to complete the circle? I challenge you to find one thing each month that will allow you to step outside of your life (and maybe even your comfort zone) and give. Do tell me about it! I love to hear from you.

Check It Out::http://artbeadscene.blogspot.com/

Enjoy the day!