The Joy of Receiving

I did my Life Coach training through an organisation in Sydney owned and run by Anne Hartley.  And I keep in touch with her by email, sometimes phone and a very occasional visit.

Anne keeps in touch with her newsletter, phone calls and emails.

Today her newsletter was headed The Joy of Receiving and I should like to share it with you:-

“Last week I put my car in to have some maintenance work done and based on the quote I’d been given I expected to have to pay a hefty bill. When I picked up my car later that day I was delighted to find that the bill was $600 less than I expected and I just assumed that the mechanic didn’t need to do as much as he originally thought.

A couple of days later I noticed that one of my tyres was really black and I wondered if the mechanic had put some blacking agent on it, however, as I walked around my car I noticed that all of my tyres looked brand new. When I saw my dad on the weekend I asked him to check out my tyres to see if they were new and he said, ‘There is no doubt, there is no wear on the tread, these are brand new tyres’. When I told him that I hadn’t asked for them, or paid for them, and that I thought the mechanic had given them to me as a random act of kindness dad said, ‘No-one would do that. There has to be some mistake. Maybe he put someone else’s tyres on your car’.

That’s when doubt set in and I started to question. Should I thank the mechanic and embarrass myself if he really didn’t mean it? Should I offer to pay for the tyres? Do I come across as poor? And as I tossed these possibilities over in my mind I became aware, once again, at how easy it is to resist receiving and most of the time that is because our ego gets in the way.

I chose to accept the gift graciously. I waited a couple of days so that he could contact me if he had made a mistake and when he didn’t I called in and thanked him for the tyres (and I suspect the reduced bill). He said, ‘Tyres, what new tyres? I didn’t put new tyres on your car.’ And that’s when I knew without doubt that he had because I saw him turn away in embarrassment and the corners of his mouth turned upwards. And that’s exactly how I used to act when I would send people money anonymously.

As I turned to walk away I said, ‘Your random act of kindness is very much appreciated and I will make sure I pass it on’ and I saw him smile. That simple gesture not only made my day, it’s made my week and possibly my month. Every time I think about it I feel good.

It’s important for all of us to learn to receive graciously, when we do this we feel good and then we pass those feelings of goodwill along to others. We shift our focus off what is wrong with the world, people, or in our own lives and onto what is good. Since then I’ve noticed how often people do give to me, sometimes it’s a simple act of courtesy, of someone going out of their way to reassure me, or the lovely girls I buy my coffee from who brighten my day just by being happy to see me.

Give by all means and at the same time be open and receptive to receiving from unexpected sources.”

Source Hart Life Coaching – anne@hartlifecoaching.com.au.

Several months ago I wrote about paying it forward and I think that Anne will be doing just that to thank her benefactor.

Nobody can do everything,
but everyone can do something.
~Author Unknown

And here’s my rainbow for Anne and her mechanic and of course, for all of you.

My rainbow

Related posts

Paying it Forward – A Cascade of Giving