The Burning Spirit of Gratefulness

Music lets us all know that the surprise of life is no mistake. Just as music is our way of saying Thank You for the gift of life, as a charity strives for perfection, music has a way of keeping the charity humble and grateful for the privilege of serving.

Music heals the world and it won’t be wrong to say that music breaks all barriers of language, religion and class. Music is an integral part of my life and it is likewise for all of us. Right from the early chirping of birds to the traffic noise, music is everywhere in some or the other form. The reason why we have artists on the Charity Spring team is because their creativity and desire to share their talent and message through song dispels the cold light of intellectual understanding that constantly analyzes and differentiates. Music offers a spirit that burns within the heart and makes the soul come alive.

We live for love. Sometimes it is born of passion and devotion. For artists, sometimes it is hard-won, requiring hard work and sacrifice. But unless we live for love, we will not be able to meet challenges confidently and with integrity when they come. Sometimes all we need is the humility of a song to surprise us out of our clashes and complaints and into the joy of gratitude.

The world beyond “me” is difficult to understand. Our viewpoints don’t match, we don’t think on the same wavelength but that doesn’t mean that I will create my own world to survive. I have to adjust, listen and compromise to stay in harmony with the world. A charity needs to lift up its eyes to the privilege of having a cause greater than itself to serve. That alone will quicken the charity and kill the peddling charity it wrongly calls itself.

I am a self involved person. I prefer doing things in my own wrong ways because I like to learn lessons out of them. I don’t like to ask for advice from my parents or anyone around. But can we all afford to do this? Too often a charity striving for perfection is in reality painstakingly preparing for its own catastrophe. The “perfect mother” can drive her children to rebellion just as surely as a charity can forget its mission. By driving for perfection in the good works to which we devote our lives we can end up narrowing our vision and burning out.

We all are trying to strike a balance in our life. I try to be good but I may be totally failing at my attempt to do so. The human nature begs to defer to each and everything that the other person is doing. My deeds may be regarded as offending acts to some and charitable acts to some others. To become engaged in philanthropy is to regain a sense of what animates us all. Charity is our humble answer to the surprise of living. Wiser than all the alphabets is the simple act of giving and receiving, the vulnerability, trusting — and love — involved in that most fundamental of all human acts. It is gratefulness, a burning spirit, that MAKES a charity great.

Music is an integral part of Charity Spring because we believe that gratitude needs to play a greater role in fundraising than solicitation. A charity finds its meaning and life from the community. A charity needs to be more creative in expressing its gratitude than merely churning out letters. We have ideas on how to incorporate music into a charity’s expression of giving thanks. Do you have ideas? Have you seen a charity use music effectively to communicate its mission and to engage its community? Please share with us your experience and suggestions.