The Power Of Half

A few months ago, a friend of mine gave me a copy of a book called "The Power of Half." It's a short read about a family who decided to sell the mansion they were living in and donate half of the profit to charity. It's a heart warming story, written in first person, giving insight to the actions and emotions leading up to the decision as well as those that followed.

The family decided to donate this large sum of cash to The Hunger Project in Africa. They not only donated the money, however, but also their own time and hard work. I liked several things about this book. First, they give real life examples of how every day people can make noteworthy donations. There is a strong emphasis not on the amount of money or goods that a person donates, but rather in the time, effort and sincerity behind the donations. It also highlights the fact that charity in and of itself is not necessarily a good thing. The family chose The Hunger Project because of the project's emphasis on empowering the people of Africa, specifically in Ghana, to gain the knowledge and skills to eventually progress beyond the need for handouts. It is the age old Chinese proverb, "give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime." A simple concept indeed, but one from which we as a nation have strayed.

I see both sides of this coin every day. I see people who are struggling, trying with all the effort they can muster just to keep their heads above water. They want to get ahead. They are trying to get off of welfare, trying to make a better life. Few of them succeed. Our nation's welfare system is not set up to help people succeed. If you make too much to qualify for a child care subsidy, but childcare costs eat up 2/3 of your pay check, then how is a family supposed to get out of debt? They work non-stop and have nothing to show for it aside from exhaustion. Life becomes one big frustration, facing setback after setback.

On the flip side, I see people who have decided that it's not worth the struggle. If the state is willing to pay for the care of their children, then why should they work like dogs to just barely maintain their bills. They can have the handout, sit back and relax and alleviate the stress of how to pay for their meals, utilities or rent. Some of these people breed generation after generation of unmotivated individuals, looking for handouts, feeling entitled to other people's money and having no sense of self worth or ability. The nation's welfare system, once intended to be a crutch, has instead solely by its infrastructure, created a population of dependents.

"The Power of Half" touches on some of the issues facing the United States, but it's primary charity of focus is this family's aid in Africa. It isn't so much the location of the charity that is important, but rather the approach. Teaching people how to get beyond their immediate crises and eventually meet their own needs is truly the crux in building a successful aid effort.

What I also enjoyed about the book was the fact that it gave real life examples of how we as normal people can help. Of course, most of us are not capable of selling our homes and donating $800,000 to charity. Many of us are unable to donate any cash at all, but nonetheless, we all have something that we can donate. We can donate items in our homes that we are no longer using, or a few cans of food from each grocery trip, or a pint of blood every 6 weeks. Moreover, we all have the ability to donate our time, our knowledge, and our skills.

In reading another friend's blog last week, I came across this reference: “Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in your power to do it.” (Proverbs 3:27 ESV www.abbynormally.com ) Giving a compliment, acknowledging someone's hard work, or lending a helping hand could be just the push that a person needs to get over a hurdle. We don't know what goes on in the minds of those we see everyday. Even our coworkers may be hiding struggles from us. As I have said before in other blogs, my belief is that the ability to give sincerely comes from a heartfelt gratitude for our own blessings. Doing good comes in all forms and each and every one of us is capable of paying forward the blessings bestowed upon us. Not only are we capable, it is our God-given duty to do so.

That said, my challenge to us all (myself included) is this: find a way to give something back each day, be it verbally, financially, a donation of time or goods, it really doesn't matter. We are all able to do good every day, but do we always take advantage of our abilities? As Abby mentioned in her blog, call a manager over and tell them how good your waitress was. Spend some extra time playing with your children, and tell them how proud you are of them. Take your kids to the soup kitchen to serve lunch on a Saturday. Visit Goodwill or the Salvation Army and offer to work for a day every month for free. Ring the bell for the Kettle Drive at Christmas time (I'll be out there ringing at least one day!). Give blood. Take some cat food and litter to your local Humane Society. Spend some time visiting with the elderly in nursing home. Whatever floats your boat, do it. Not only will you make someone else feel good, you'll feel pretty darn good yourself!

So, I asked Becky if she wanted her book back and her response was to pay it forward...Since she was so kind as to give the book to me, I am going to give the book to one of you. Here's what you have to do. Post a comment on this blog entry. I'll have Jacob draw names from a hat and the winner will be given the book, "The Power of Half" with the understanding that when you are done with it, you'll not only find ways to do good, but will also pass the book along. I'll draw names a week from today - Friday the 22nd and announce the winner on Saturday the 23rd. Get writing!

Special thanks to Becky for the book and Abby for the proverbs reference and some of the "doing good" ideas.