The Buddha is Here!
Oh glory days, the Buddha arrived. Not the actual Buddha (although if he were to check out of Nirvana I'm sure my house would be his first stop) but the Buddha Michael bought in China. A fat stone Buddha sitting on a huge pile of coins. It goes near the front door of the house and is supposed to ensure fabulous riches. That's what I love about traditional Chinese culture. We're all greedy and covet wealth, but they don't try to pretend otherwise.
Speaking of wealth and greed, I sit on the board of three different charitable organizations, and I have to say what blows my mind is how little most people give to charity. There are individuals who seem to genuinely enjoy donating to things they care about, and then there are those who just don't want to part with a nickel. I've often found that the wealthier the person, they less inclined they are to donate. Someone for whom I know 100 dollars presents a huge portion of their disposable cash will gladly and proudly donate it, and another person who wouldn't even notice if they misplaced ten thousand holds onto it with his teeth. I wish I could explain to them that donation is the supremely selfish gesture. It makes you feel good. It makes you feel needed, even powerful. With the simple scrawling of your name on a check, you can become a superstar to someone, or some organization. I always know my mania is in full swing when I start writing those big checks. It's a tremendously fun thing to do.
My kids get two allowances every week, one for their greedy little selves, and one for their tzedaka boxes (their fund for charity). Every Hanukkah they get to decide what to give money to. This year Sophie and Zeke made a $101.81 donation to the World Wildlife Fund. They're so impressed with themselves that if their gesture doesn't result in a dramatic increase in the worldwide panda population, they are going to be pretty stunned. They also made a lunch for a "poor person." (Look, I don't censor the wording on their 8-point Hanukah good deed list.) They packed a bunch of sandwiches, milk, cookies, a chocolate pudding, two apples, a bottle of water and a spoon and we gave it to the guy who sells the Street Spirit outside our market. I put a couple of bucks in the bag, too, so he wouldn't be disappointed. Now they've got to do their Toys for Tots delivery, and somehow I've got to browbeat some elderly shut-in into letting them clean up her yard.
29 Comments:
What a fantastic life lesson you're giving your kids! I can't help but think it will be one of those things that stays with them for the rest of their lives as cherished memories of the season.
...
Thanks fivecats. I hope you're right. You've got a real live grown-up child, right?
Hi ##NAME##, very unique blog you have! I was looking for Palm Reading related information and came across your site. Very good info, I'm definitely going to bookmark you! I have a Palm Reading site. You can get an honest and informative reading to help you find your soul mate or lost loved one. You can also get info on numerology and astrology. Please visit it :-)
If you have a site similar to mine and would like to exchange links, please contact me through my website.
Con tutte le opzioni, come sapete se avete fatto la giusta scelta?Toodle-oo, Lloyd Illinois breast enhancement recovery
I was looking for a place that had information on federal direct student loan, and I found your site.Toodle-oo, Jeanetta federal direct student loan
�Usted sabe de qu� m�s tengo gusto? �Ovaltine!Compliments, Ara california plastic surgery
Hi there. I'm just a retiree from Michigan cruising around the net and looking for
interesting blogs. Came across your blog and thought I 'd say hello. Nice blog.
Regards,
Rhonda
california debt consolidation loan
Coins are my passion. I love to look at them and hold. I think about the history of the coin in hand. Who used it at one time? Where has it been? Did this Morgan dollar actually participate in a poker game in the old west? Did someone get shot for cheating? Its fascinating when you consider this type question. So much history in a litle piece of metal.
Debt reduction can be done in many ways. A recent method being used is to buy some debt reduction software. You can purchase debt reduction software online or at a computer software store. The software usually comes with a debt reduction calculator to help you decipher how quickly your debt will be paid off in accordance to your monthly balance payments. Similarly, there are also debt reduction books you can purchase at your local bookstore. The best route for help with debt reduction is to go to see a credit counseller or a debt reduction counseller.
Link to this site: repayment
http://www.debt-freeonline.com
Debt elimination services can help consumers who have more debt than they can manage look into options of reducing or negating that debt. When searching for debt elimination, consumers should seek an agency that offers debt counselling and guidance based on an individual's unique circumstance.
Link to this site: bankruptcy
http://www.improved-credit.com
Debt reduction can be done in many ways. A recent method being used is to buy some debt reduction software. You can purchase debt reduction software online or at a computer software store. The software usually comes with a debt reduction calculator to help you decipher how quickly your debt will be paid off in accordance to your monthly balance payments. Similarly, there are also debt reduction books you can purchase at your local bookstore. The best route for help with debt reduction is to go to see a credit counseller or a debt reduction counseller.
Link to this sitte: business debt help
http://www.debt-help4u.com
Sometimes people find themselves in a situation where they have no money, payday is a week or more away. During these times you can get a cash advance which is basically a loan until payday. These Payday Advance loans are simply cash advance which are easy to qualify for and in fact you can usually get a cash advance online.
Information and best buys on products and services of all kinds. Gift Certificates
A fantastic blog. Keep it up. No better time than now to learn about mortgage refinances visit http://thehomemortgageguide.com Start planning for the future
I've been searching for bad credit home loan mortgage se for a while and finally came across something worth reading. The Buddha is Here! is not exactly what I was looking for, but as I said it was something worth reading. Ayelet Waldman, I appreciate the information and would like to encourage you to keep up the good work. I hope I come across more great reads in my quest for bad credit home loan mortgage se.
Good comments. But, I do not agree with most of them. People sure have a lot of time on their hands.
good post
Hi there friend You have a real ice Blog Here
why not visit my blog and post your bad plastic surgery tara reid link and also visit my website at http://www.medicare-cosmetic-surgery.com bad plastic surgery tara reid
Ayelet Waldman, I want to thank you for this post. I was nearing the end of my rope in my search for california bad credit mortgage, and even though The Buddha is Here! didn't exactly meet my needs, it was such a worthwhile read that it gave me some more energy to continue. Thanks again. I can only hope to find more gems in my search for california bad credit mortgage.
Here's a useful resources on early breast cancer screening worth a look: http://breast-cancer1.com/
I have been following a site now for almost 2 years and I have found it to be both reliable and profitable. They post daily and their stock trades have been beating
the indexes easily.
Take a look at Wallstreetwinnersonline.com
RickJ
I looked at several sites during this search but yours was the best I found on this subject. Keep up the good work.
Hi there friend You have a real nice Blog
Here why not visit my blog and website
and post your plastic surgery for man plastic surgery for man
and also visit my website at http://www.medicare-cosmetic-surgery.com plastic surgery for man
With a basic understanding of the management of moisture, household mold maintenance is simple. Molds have been around forever and will never be gone, and it is good that they are here. But like so many things, too much of a good thing can be a bad thing. Stay informed, but don't get caught up in the hype. Remember, it's about knowing!
removing black mold http://moldnhouse.com/household-mold.html
Non-Surgical Breast Enhancement and Lift!
I really like your site about home mortgage lender.
Good job on putting it together.
I've also got a little spot about home mortgage lender.
Come on over...
Saw your blog about car finance calculator - as it is along the same lines I thought I would share this link with you. We were paying far too much for family things like clothes for us and the kids, games consoles inc the new Wii and soon to be PS3, car insurance/home insurance/pet insurance, broadband, mobile phones, landline calls, home and garden items, camping equipment and utilities/loans etc - you name it, we were spending too much on it.
Then a friend of mine recommended a site called www.bargainplace.co.uk. We were able to get cheaper electricity, gas, mobile phone, broadband and loan deals at bargainplace. Thanks to my friend (and the site) I am saving something like £100 a month and can afford an extra holiday abroard each year. Booked of course on www.bargainplace.co.uk. Thanks bargainplace ;-) !!
.
.
.
.
.
.
Good blog - very interesting!! I liked it so much I'm going to share this hush hush advice with you. Ever wondered how your neighbours are driving around in their brand new BMW or Mercedes cars - with their kids dressed in all the latest named gear and foreign holidays aplenty?? Well they discovered the secret to the extra online income.
If you are looking for a free tool to attract loads of free links to your blog or website then congratulations I've got the solution for you - and it is FREE!!
My website specialises in barclays bank ghana and to drive traffic to my website I was searching around the internet for absolutely ages looking for SEO tools and ffa submission sites to fire my site up the Google search engine - unfortunately these doing work and in fact had the opposite affect plunging my site down the rankings like it had a heavy weight attached!!, then I signed up for this free superb traffic generating tool - I now have loads of hits to my websites/blogs and my site is shooting back up the Google rankings quicker than ever before.
Consequently this saw my affiliate commissions shoot through the roof - meaning lots of extra money coming in for my family - I bought my first Mercedes car on the proceeds of my online campaign.
Sign up now - it's free.. Sorry if this information is of no use to you but seeing as you have the anonymous feature enabled I thought I should share this free bit of essential promotional advice with you and would hope you would do the same for me and others who want to boost their online internet income.
I hope the tool will serve you equally as well as it has me - it's free!!
Best of luck, cheers for now, dave.
.
.
.
.
.
.
lake michigan rental
Post a Comment
<< Home