The art of giving and computers

The apples are really ripening here in Iowa. Cliff picked about 40 apples for a pie awhile back from a neighbor's tree and instead of letting the extras rot I gave some away by posting an offer on our local Freecycle.org board on-line. Cliff was a little disappointed at first when he saw an e-mail in response to my offer. Until, the woman picked up the apples I had left on our doorstep and he went out to introduce himself. He said she thanked him immensely and said her family was financially struggling and really needed them. Before she arrived Cliff was not in a giving mood. Afterward, I think the spirit of giving softened him and he was downright jolly that afternoon!

So a few days later when he went to mow his grandmother's lawn she gave him a huge sack of pears and apples off her tree (which he helped pick) for us and for other people in need. It's a good feeling to give something to others with no strings attached and to see our junk needed by others. For instance, we had three old weed eaters with various issues. One was given to us to fix and use. One Cliff found on a curb. Another we bought at a garage sale. I was sick of them collecting dust in the garage and so I put them up as an offer on freecycle.org. I let people know they were not working. I was amazed at all the people who responded with a need for them. To me they were unwanted junk! To others they were gold! And I was glad Cliff didn't get mad at me! LOL. They were in our garage for several years!! We have been very fortunate to have people give freely to us as well.

It's funny how people used to think the internet and computers would isolate us from our neighbors and make us hermits. I've met more kind and caring people thru the internet than would have been possible otherwise. It's even helped me locate family I had been looking for and would not have found otherwise. I can't say I would have thought computers would have helped with any of those things. I feel very fortunate to have a computer and internet access.

Of course, computers aren't always needed to give or receive! The monitor I am using was on a curb this summer. I saw the owner and he said it works great! And a friend recently gave us a printer a woman off of freecycle never picked up. I suppose if we were rich we wouldn't have the need for people to give to us. And when we get the chance we always give freely as well. I'm so pleased the art of giving is alive and well and will never go out of style. It makes our day to be able to help others and to be helped when we need it...and that's nothing to throw an apple at. And by the way, most of the time I leave items I want to give to people on freecycle on the driveway for security purposes. However, the people I have met are usually no different than you or I.

About freecycle (from Wikipedia): The Freecycle Network (often abbreviated TFN) is a non-profit organization registered in Arizona that organizes a worldwide network of regiving groups, aiming to divert usable goods from landfills. It provides an online registry of worldwide groups, and coordinates the creation of forums for individuals and non-profits to offer and receive free items for reuse or recycling. By 2006, The Freecycle Network extended to over 3700 groups with almost 2.5 million members.