Give

Today I read a story about kidney transplants, with profiles of 6 donor-recipient pairs. This got me to thinking about what giving really means.

Webster's...er....gives several meanings depending on context:

• To present voluntarily and without expecting compensation; bestow: to give a birthday present to someone.


• To hand to someone: Give me that plate, please.


• To place in someones care: If you give me your coat, I'll put it in the closet.

...and so forth. The one that most captures the spirit I'm discussing is the first one.

I think the joy of giving in this manner comes from the 'compensation' you do receive, because it is so unexpected. At the very least you get the feeling that you are advancing human-kind's place in the world, one person at a time sometimes, and sometimes by affecting entire groups of people.