Giving and Receiving

I’m a gift-giver. That doesn’t mean I’m special or particularly noble. It’s just who I am and what I do. If you’ve read Gary Chapman’s, The Five Love Languages, you know that gift-giving is one of the five and it’s been a part of me for as long as I can remember. Yes, sometimes I’ve gone too far or have used it for wrong reasons, but mostly it’s how I respond when my heart needs to sing.

Recently, I attended a wedding of a couple I adore. The service was held in a magnificent setting and I knew, even before the service began, that I wanted to try and paint the scene. When I returned home and went to my studio, I began right away. I didn’t want to forget how it looked or how it made me feel. When the painting was finished, my wife and I had it framed and gave it to the couple.

A voice within wanted to point out it was no masterpiece, but I didn’t listen and sent it anyway. I’m glad I did because the couple adored it and their reaction made such an impression on me that I needed to make it a brushstroke.

The connection I felt to the couple when they responded to the painting felt nothing short of divine. Someone gave a gift and it was received with profound gratitude. I’m not sure there’s a better reason to be alive. To offer a piece of ourselves, in whatever way we may, and have that be received with joy is what I think we’re here for. Whether as the giver or the receiver, the encounter is sacred. It’s true between one another, and it’s true with God.

And yet, as givers  . . .

We often listen to the voices that say what we have to offer is not good enough, we let the fear of rejection win the day, we measure a relationship to decide if it warrants such generosity, or we let our fear of not having enough cause our fists to clench around whatever we have to give.

As recipients . . .

We take others’ generosity for granted, we expect gifts, we open a gift but never really receive it because we’re too busy moving through life at warp speed, or we let our hopes and/or expectations measure what’s given.

My recent experience with this young couple has reminded me that giving something of our selves is what life is all about, and that receiving whatever is given is a way to complete the sacred dance that beckons.

The choice is ours.