(43-290) Help Me, Help You

I've received some absolutely fabulous gifts in my lifetime, and I'm grateful for all of them; but I also find that it often really does feel better to give rather than to receive. If you’re familiar with me and “The Bumpy Ride,” then you know, I LOVE helping. I've mentioned before that I volunteer for everything from my kid's school classes to our soccer league board; and yet, I myself have a very difficult time asking friends for help or accepting assistance from others. Well the other day I had a bit of an epiphany, and I realized that sometimes we HAVE to let other people do things for us when they offer because if we don't, we are depriving them of the happy feeling that you get when you do something nice for someone else.

So there you have it, my lesson for the day; if you're someone who often offers to help others then you need to permit others the opportunity to go out of their way for you too. Here’s an example: Typically when my family goes home to Puerto Vallarta, we stay at my in-laws house and we give my mother-in-law money for groceries as she cooks our meals. Since Luis will be going to Vallarta on his own next Tuesday, we were discussing how much money he should give his mom for food. We settled on an amount, and I told Luis that if his mom declined the money, he should insist; however, if she still didn’t want to take the money then he should just thank her and accept her generosity, since I’m sure that it makes her feel good to take care of him when he’s there. We discussed how we think nothing of offering to help others but we typically don’t feel comfortable when people try to reciprocate. We usually try to decline friend’s offers of favors because we don’t want to put anyone out or seem like we’re taking advantage but the truth is, we always offer with the best intentions and the fullest hearts; so we should believe that our friends are doing the same.

I know so many people who are natural helpers, and who feel more comfortable doing for others than letting others do for them; but we ALL need to give and accept help or a random act of kindness from time to time. So maybe think of it this way; you're HELPING your friend feel good, when you allow them to help you.
I hoped that help!
Till next time...
Queen of EVERYTHING