Something for nothing

Tags

Blessings, Blog, Facebook, Generosity, Giving, good luck, Human kindness, Kindness, Love, service work, Twitter, Unemployed, Yoga

Nearly lost it on the way home from my yoga studio today. No, not falling off my bike… instead, deep sobs of gratitude welling from the pit of my stomach.

Had a little temp work in the last week, from Friday to Friday, four hours a day. Crazy little job really. Sitting on a reception desk where the phone hardly rings, and being told Oh, just look up whatever you like online… They worried if I’d be bored, without realising what an internet addict they had on their hands. Being paid to read blogs/Twitter/Facebook for four hours a day really isn’t bad, considering I’d be doing just that anyway…

Due to this surge of gainful employment, I wasn’t able to do all my hours at the yoga studio this week. Which kinda freaked me out, as I don’t like to disappoint once I’ve made an agreement.

But my yoga teacher said not to worry, and that it was better for me to be out there earning money. Actually, she’s been apologising for only being able to offer me cleaning work – can you imagine? Several times I’ve explained how damn grateful I am to be offered anything at all.

And it’s not that I’m superstitious or anything, but sometimes the space for a change of any kind requires a realignment. If you can’t make it happen yourself, a warm hearted and caring person can perhaps do it for you.

But certainly, I’ve seen more work in this last week than I have in three months. And none of it happened until after my teacher went out of her way to help me. I’m just sayin’.

So anyway, I arrived two hours early today to catch up on my hours for the week. Cleaning I find, is service work of a sort. It brings me joy to help maintain a place that’s becoming like a second home for me.

Then five hours of class, and as I’m leaving my teacher asked me if I’d like to be paid for my work thus far – literally half of the time I’d agreed to. Given it was that or withdrawing more money out of my dangerously depleted bank account, I said sure.

And get this – she pays me as if I’d worked 100% of the hours. Tells me it’s for good luck when I suggested she didn’t have to do that.

So I’m leaving with cash in my pocket, only half of which I’d actually earned and my eyes stinging madly. They’ve been stinging on and off all night.

Tried to think about the last time I did something for someone like that – just gave them money or goods or food – directly benefitting them in a way they really need.

Sure, I donate clothes and belongings to charities on a regular basis. But it’s not quite the same, is it?

Not that it was a lot of money but it wasn’t nothing either, and it’s gonna keep me afloat in the coming week.

It means a great deal more to me than that, though. Such a powerful act of kindness is a teaching in itself, isn’t it?

~Svasti

Small miracles #2

Tags

Debit card, Human kindness, Intuition, Lost and found, Melbourne, Miracles, Shootings, Underbelly

A while back I posted about losing stuff. And the obsessing and anxiety I used to experience whenever something important vanished… it seemed to make things worse. Relaxing, being mindful and surrendering on the other hand, seemed to somehow contribute to things turning up.

It’s a pattern I’ve noticed and whilst I can’t prove this theory one way or the other, it seems to work for me. Or I’m lucky (sometimes). Or my celestial guardian beings are being extra vigilant right now. Or its all just one great big enormous, multi-faceted coincidence.

Whatever floats your boat, but as I’ve said before I don’t believe in coincidences.

Like my first small miracle in recent times, today I experienced the Grace of human kindness at its best.

So I get a call mid-morning from some dude: Hi, it’s Simon from XXXX Bank. We’ve been contacted by a woman who says she has your debit card. Have you lost it?

Confusion.

This morning as I got off the train, I’d looked in my purse and noticed the card wasn’t there. I had a nano-second of panic before I was decided it was safely at home. I’d gotten it out the night before and mustn’t have put it back in my purse.

This was based on my gut instinct/intuition was telling me things were all good.

As well as the voice that I’ve mentioned before, the other part of my intuition works like this: I think of something I need to know – such as – “my card isn’t lost, its safe…” and either I get the game show buzzer style “bup-bowwww” response if its negative, or it just rings true. Wait – there’s a third option – its like a hollow thud, and that means I simply don’t know yet.

Each time a question rings true, I can be sure it’s as good as gold. As in, it will be just as I thought. This is tried and tested! So before that phone call, I already felt like it wasn’t really lost.

The bank dude patched me through to the woman. Turns out I’d dropped my card at the bus stop where I start my daily odyssey. It had been in my bag after all, but clearly not secured.

Someone found it and took it to a small local shopping mall, then handed it in to center management. The woman on the phone was the Center Manager asking me how I’d like to get it back. She’s gonna post it to me.

For all this to occur, not one but two people had to go out of their way. Luckily the person who found my card was kind hearted, and was possibly going to the mall anyway. Then they had to find the admin area (who knows where that is!), and make sure it got to the right place.

The card wasn’t even found at the mall. But nevertheless, the Center Manager took responsibility anyway, worked out a plan and rang my bank.

It’s the sort of thing I would do – and have done – for others.

These two lovely people have saved me considerable inconvenience. It may not have been a lot of extra effort, but for many it would have been too much to ask. Less savoury types might’ve just tried to jack money out of it somehow.

And let’s face it – this ain’t no small country town – this is Melbourne, people! Home of “Underbelly” and gangland wars and shootings and stuff. Melbourne, where every weekend brings a stabbing or two. Melbourne, crime underworld headquarters…

So whilst it clearly isn’t much in return, I can only offer my heartfelt thanks to these two strangers for acting like the world isn’t too large to give a hand to someone they’ve never met. May your kindness come back to you many times over.

Om Shanti!

~Svasti