Well thank you my dear, that's very sweet of you to say. Seriously. And I tend to share your views on mankind. It's for that very reason that I do what I do here. Purely by accident, I stumbled upon a way to share my experiences, gifts and somewhat limited talents with a vast array of people, members, guests and lurkers alike, while at the same time being given a chance to make some true friends. Honestly, despite the occasional frustrations, it's been a truly unique, gratifying and humbling opportunity. You also touched on the real "secret" behind giving, whether it be financially, the gift of knowledge, assistance, emotional support or anything else, which is that true, sincere giving should never be done with the expectation of receiving anything in return. While I don't have anything against those who donate money and have buildings named after them, that just isn't my style, and in fact, I have very specific language in my will that instructs my children to make all gifts through a foundation with a seemingly anonymous sounding name based on their initials. Anyway, my point being, when a gift of any kind draws adulation to the giver, speaking for me anyway, the real point and impact is lost. The purest joy in giving comes from the incredibly humbling feeling of having been presented with the opportunity to help someone, the resources (financially or otherwise) to do so and the selflessness to take action. To expect anything in return is to miss the point, and as you know, the sad reality is that we live in a selfish world.
In any event, the good news is that I've found joy beyond measure in giving to and helping others, and it's allowed me to find and maintain a level of balance and perspective in life that I truly need to offset my often jaded and cynical view of mankind. While I must admit that the spiritual side of my life could use a bit of development and improvement, all I know is that when my time in this life is done and I stand before my maker, I'd like to be confident that they'd look back at me and say "Well done, good and faithful servant. That which you did for the least of my brothers and sisters, you surely did for Me". If there's one philosophy in life that I would love to see become contagious, it would be that.
Thank you for your kind words Beranda, they truly mean a lot to me. You're indeed a wise and beautiful soul, with a unique taste in hunky, prosthetically enhanced, flying thong wearing albino men! /default_biggrin.png
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CnC5:
@hotdog45 thanks brother right back at you!
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xenxra:
good luck
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Alkazar:
It is really annoying\
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Flydaddy5000:
I’m starting to dig this place and some of the folks in it! Not gonna lie I was sooo skeptical about this place until I wasn’t. Donate and you won’t be pissed off. I
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LW815:
@Alkazar would that effect snail mail arriving to the US from CA in any impactful way?
