The Joy of Sharing/Giving

During one of my courses this year, my university professor (one of the best profs ever! :D) talked to us about the importance of sharing/giving without holding back. In Singapore, and in many parts of the world as well, we are brought up in such competitive environments that we become increasingly self-centered!

I really admired my prof when she said that she taught her daughters to help others - truly give to others, without holding back for fear of competition. A story she told us was about how her daughter, who was good in math, voluntarily made notes and exercises for her classmate who was weak in the subject to help her improve. In the final year examination, that classmate scored better than she did. If it were a typical parent, they would probably have admonished their daughter for helping another student to perform better than herself. But my prof didn't. Instead, she praised her daughter for being a good teacher. This way of teaching has molded her daughters to always give generously and i was really touched by that story.

My parents have never brought me up with any pressure of having to outdo my peers, and by nature, i'm not a competitive person. but i have been guilty of being selfish. i do still have some of that kiasu-singaporean streak in me, where at times i don't feel comfortable with others outdoing me. but i was really inspired by that story my prof told us, and i thought, that is how i would want to bring up my own children. and if i want to do that, i have to lead by example. so i tried it, for the first time. when i was studying for my final examinations during this past week, i had made notes for myself, and i offered them to my friend who needed help in that subject. and it felt good! (: and even better, because my friend was thankful for my help, she sent me a set of really good notes which she had gotten from someone else, and i shared this with a number of my other friends - and it felt AWESOME :D i didn't expect anything back from helping my first friend, but she reciprocated, and it allowed me to help my other friends too (: this is really an example of one good deed leads to another.

i'm really inspired to help, give and share with others generously now. it is not easy to let go of our preconceived notions of self=preservation and competitiveness. but i've taken the first step, and i will continue to go on :D