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| May, 2008 | ||
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TWENTY years ago while driving in a forlorn area of Los Angeles, Catherine Ryan Hyde’s car suddenly died and started to fill with smoke. Without being asked, two men put themselves at risk and extinguished the fire. After the fire department arrived Hyde wanted to thank the good Samaritans only to discover that they had left the scene. She realized, not only had they saved her car, but her business (which she used her car for) and possibly her life. Hyde decided then that she would make it a point to do a good deed for someone else in need, and she also decided to write Pay It Forward, a book about her experience. After the book was published it was made into a film starring Kevin Spacey, Helen Hunt and Haley Joel Osment. The popularity of the movie brought renewed interest to the book and was a catalyst for the creation of the Pay It Forward movement and its subsequent website. The site has an e-mail link to IFstories@payitforwardmovement.org that encourages visitors to share stories of good deeds done by themselves or others. Hyde states, “The Pay It Forward Movement website is to bring together, in one place, as many real stories as we can. It is also a source of some good news for a change, a way to renew your faith in human nature.” The web-site also accepts online donations that are used to fund grants for educational projects and other outreach programs that assist in the growth of the Pay It Forward Foundation. Hyde’s inspiring book has changed the lives of many who now understand that paying a good deed forward can possibly help to eradicate poverty and biases. I think the ongoing, positive effect of Hyde’s book is best stated in this online testimonial by Gabriel, a writer of children’s books: “[the] Pay It Forward Movement is rewarding and contagious...you will always find that by giving selflessly, your needs will automatically be met, for it is a universal law that never fails.” |
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| —Mary Porter | ||
WHAT is your spiritual gift? Author Howard Wimer presents an interesting and plausible theory for what he refers to as the “four spiritual gifts” that he believes we are born with. The “gifts” are: prophecy (inner knowing), healing (inner feelings), clairaudience (inner thoughts or ideas) and clairvoyance (inner vision). Wimer offers a practical, no-nonsense explanation of the dominant personality traits and communication styles that make each gift unique; with this information and a short questionnaire you are able to determine which gifts are your primary and secondary gifts, and how to best balance and use the traits of each gift in all areas of your life. According to the book, my primary gift is prophecy. Wimer says the communication mode of a prophetic is knowing what you want to say before you say it; even expecting that others automatically know what you mean. For each gift, there is a check-off list of positive and negative traits so that we can balance our not-so-positive traits against our positive ones. A positive trait of a prophetic is expressing oneself freely and openly; a not-so-positive trait is procrastination—I am familiar with both! Once you’ve determined your primary gift, you move on to your secondary gift to get a more complete picture of your personality. Wimer states, “Your basic personality is shaped not only by your primary gift but also by your gift order, especially the order of your first two gifts. Together, these two form the foundation of who you are and how you move through the world.” After you know your gifts, you can follow the guidelines for how to communicate effectively with the gifts of others. |
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| —Yolanda Porter | ||
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