Recently I received a gift. It's one of those you never dream ever landing on your lap, that leave you gasping for breath out of disbelief and then makes you cry.
No, it is not that dream house up the hill. Not yet. But it is just as grand and very much up my mountain.
And to receive it from someone totally unexpected, (someone who until recently was just known to me as a dear friend deeply devoted to his advocacy, of unbelievable humor, hailing from some far away Texas) truly makes it a thing of deep value.
There are gifts that hold you spellbound for weeks, even for the rest of your life. Like the gift of your first born, her first smile, her first laugh and her first “Papa!”. Gifts like her first ballet recital, her first bike ride without those trainers, her first lap of the pool and her triumph over leukemia.
And then there are gifts that remind you the true meaning of friendships, of the self-giving that still abounds. Priceless gifts they are for they came from deep within the giver's heart, born out of deep faith on the one receiving the gift.
They are special gifts that makes the recipient want to give back, to be generous, to pay it forward. They lead hearts like my own to seek goodness in all things, appreciate all things, grateful for all things.
A favorite author wrote in a blog that “A true gift is a heartfelt connection, something that changes both the giver and the recipient.”
I couldn't agree more.
