7 Day Positivity Challenge: The Joy of Receiving
I have always been happy to help others when I can, to go "without" if I needed to, to go out of my way if that's what it takes, but for some reason, I have a very difficult time accepting help when someone is offering it.
I don't know why, don't know where that comes from, but it is something I've become aware of, thanks to all of you and it's time to "retrain my mind".
It started with the "fundraiser" that @davemccoy did for Brian and I. I was, and still am, in complete awe of the support and love we received, but for some reason, there's still a side-dish of shame that comes with it. Why? Not sure.
That same feeling came about again today when @eaglespirit offered to do a free energy reading session for Brian and I because "someone" was willing to pay for it. Turns out that "someone" was @iexplore, and when I went to the Information Finding Discord channel, I witnessed a conversation where @apolymask was also willing to make up the difference if necessary, just 'because'. I was so pleased and honored to see them jumping to help, but at the same time, I had this little feeling in the pit of my stomach, a bit of bile that again tasted of shame.
@erodedthoughts told me some time ago that "pride" is one of the 7 Deadly Sins, and there should be no shame in accepting help from your friends, no shame in allowing your friends to help you.
I was raised to stand on my own two feet, to work, to take care of myself, and to not rely on others. Like most things in life, there is a healthy balance there, one which I am beginning to understand.
@sams-world wrote a beautiful post about "The Art of Receiving", and in it he said,
Giving is hyped. Receiving not.
(His post is already 6 days old, but if you haven't had the pleasure of his posts yet, be sure and check any of them out ;)
See? I can't help myself...I always think of giving or helping in some way, shape or form :)
I guess that "giving" is a learned behavior, "receiving" is not. Perhaps then, it is something we should teach our children?
As of this moment forward then, I will repeat this new mantra to myself, until it finally gets through:)
The joy I take in helping others, is the same joy others take in helping me.
Such a simple statement, but at least for me, the ramifications are endless.
Today and moving forward, my positivity focus is on the "joy of receiving". So thank you so much to all of you that have helped me in some way, and right now, special thanks to @eaglespirit, @iexplore and @apolymask ;)
Do you "receive" with grace? with dignity? or with shame?
The Rules:
The 'rules' are fairly simple, but truthfully, I would encourage all of you if you don't, to live your life as if you're entering a positivity challenge every single day. It really does take more muscle movement and energy to frown instead of smiling ;)
- Write a post about something you have to be positive about today - this could be anything from being thankful for your current situation, someone being nice to you, being thankful for your friends and family, or even being thankful for the opportunity you have been given here on Steemit - just keep it positive :)
- Do this for 7 days in a row if you get nominated (with my life, I won't be doing it seven days in a row, but you can be sure I will write seven posts :)
- Mention three people who should do this on each day.
- Tag it with #7daypositivitychallenge and include these rules at the bottom of your post
- Include a picture of something positive (related to your story if possible)
Today I am skipping the nominations, but if there is any of you reading that are interested, please let me know and I'll include you in my next one :)
Proud Member of :
I really hope you two enjoy your reading! @eaglespirit provides great energy and I'm sure you all will come away with something! :)
Life truly is finding that balance. I am a true believer in trying to keep everything balanced. Take care my friend!
you are such a sweet soul, and it worked out beautifully. i want to thank you for being so kind and generous, without you putting this into my head i would not have had the guts to ask and it may never have happened. :)
Tip!
Thank you so very much @iexplore for your comment and for your gift. @eaglespirit did an amazing job and Brian and I are still both "chewing" on the reading today. It was so kind of you to do that for us!
Yes, balance is key, and it's a new trick this 'old dog' is learning haha
Again, I am so glad you enjoyed the reading! I knew @eaglespirit would do an awesome job! :)
Beautiful post @lynncoyle1. I'm the same way, willing to help because I want to but such a hard time asking for help when I need it.
And oddly....lately I have been I find myself in the position of accepting compliments. I am not used to that. I appreciate all the wonderful feedback I have been getting is a little overwhelming. I truly don't know what to say.
It's really interesting, isn't it? We say thank you, but feel this weird void after it, like we're supposed to add, "if I can ever do anything for you blah blah blah", instead of just accepting it.
You can nominate me! I keep trying to get more posts out! I love having a carrot!! Haha 🎶🍉🍊🥕 🤣 Haha nice to connect Lynn!! Relax & Receive!!! I am learning this lesson in life with you girl 🤦♀️
Hooray!! I'll probably get to a post tomorrow, fingers crossed, so you're the gal I'm nominating. Thank you @yogajill :)
It's strange that so many of us seem to have a difficult time with receiving. Something I will continue to ponder I think :)
beautifully written @lynncoyle1. I believe that one of the most important reasons for training ourselves to be gracious receivers is because if we don't allow someone to give to us then it robs them of the benefits of giving, the same benefits we get when we give. I agree that most of us have to make a concerted effort to become gracious receivers though because it goes against our nature until we understand it. God bless you guys! ps- my vote is worthless, recharging but I wanted to show my appreciation.
Thank you so much @janton, I appreciate your stopping by, and yes, you understand this completely. It is a bit of a paradigm shift...stand in the other person's shoes and suddenly, with a bit of empathy, it becomes crystal clear why we "need" to be gracious receivers.
And absolutely no worries about your voting power. I feel your pain buddy haha it just means you've been giving out lots of love today :)
God bless you!
Aww, thank you for mentioning me Lynn! :))
You are most welcome @sams-world! I am really enjoying your posts :)
"For many, a simple 'Thank You' is not that simple..." - Jaichai
Thanks for the solid post.
Namaste, Jaichai
Thank you @jaichai; you said it perfectly there...not that simple at all ;)
Awesome!! here it is, i didnt see this and thank you for the mention. interesting because this kind of came up. food for thought! :)
I'm so glad you found this! Thank you again; I don't yet have the words to express how I feel about it all, I'm still working through it, but yes, "this" did come up, didn't it?! :)
@lynncoyle1 yes there is a lot in there and to sort of do two in 2 hours was a lot. there was a lot of info to get through and i sent him a private message with all the info from his so he can look at it, with an added message in there. if you have more questions let me know.
I will for sure! Thank you again :)
@lynncoyle1 sure thing! let me know how it goes.
Ah, do I recognize myself in your post. I appreciate generosity, but it is painful when I am the recipient of it. I don't know where that comes from. It does take grace to be a giver and a receiver.
Haha, true... We are many :)
:)
I'm still trying to figure out where it comes from, but I guess in the end, it doesn't really matter. What matters is we figure out a way to receive with grace :) I seem to have touched a nerve with a few people, so perhaps this is something very common and something for all of us to think about.
Thanks for stopping by @agmoore ;)
Wow! This is certainly an interesting topic. Personally, I feel that, if someone one does something for me, I would like to do something for them in return. I'm not necessarily talking about a one for one exchange for services. If you fix my car today, something that I can't do, maybe sometime later I'll do something for you that I can do. I feel better about receiving, if I know that I'll be doing something in return somewhere in the future.
Yes I agree Roger. It's strange though that we seem to have such a difficult time "accepting" it with the love that was intended. Most of the comments here are saying the same, and it makes me wonder why. Thanks for stopping by!
You are blessed with great people in your life, it would almost seem like not respecting them by not being grateful for their amazing gifts and not receiving all the love they can give. This was such a lovely read, thank you for sharing it, a great positivity entry. 💚
Thank you @zen-art! I'm so glad you enjoyed it. And yes, I think you hit the nail on the head :)