day 6: lots of gifts given & received....

[Judy Connolly]

I had the opportunity to give several gifts today, and, of course, in the process I received great joy and a light heart. My first opportunity to give appeared when I met my best friend Rita for coffee and was able to buy her coffee and a cookie whichh we split. We often do this for each other so I knew I wouldn't count that as my "real" day 6 gift. We had a long catching up session and the conversation led to Rita wantitng to make some changes. I was able to break down four major areas for her and asked her to pick just one so that we could focus on asking for growth in that one area. She identified that she wanted to grow her business but was fearful of/overwhelmed by the marketing aspect. When I asked her if she had googled "small business marketing" she responded that even that overwhelmed her. Bingo! My gift today was to tell her that I would google it, research it and narrow it down for her. When I got home, I did just that. As I began to read through the plethora of websites, I found myself getting overwhelmed. But, when doing something for someone I love, I tend to stick with it or find another way. The other way soon came to me: my nephew is a talented 2009 graduate of MIAD (Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design) who started a small business specializing in marketing, graphic design, and logo creation. I believe he & Rita would be a good fit, so I introduced them to each other via email. I am excited to see where this leads. Other important gifts today: treating myself to a pedicure with Rita (I got an extended amount of time with her); taking my son out to eat dinner (we sat outside and had a great conversation); and buying my son some dress clothes that he has been wanting (his expression of profound and unsolicited gratitude was a gift to me). What a full and blessed day!

[Deb~ Community Manager]

Wow Judy. I am pooped from all you have done in this day! All thoughtful and loving gifts too. You are kind...

[Nancy Dauphinais]

You're challenging me to reconsider whether some of my gifts are "real" gifts, as they may not be really stretching me out of my comfort zone of giving. I like the way you--"Bingo"--knew when you had happened upon the "right" gift, or at least the more inspired gift... Thanks for sharing.