More Sowing, More Reaping.

We had our carpet steam-cleaned yesterday, most of it, anyway, for the first time ever in this house.

 The men arrived around noon and Lennon went streaking back to the dark bedroom where Tom slept, having worked the graveyard shift Friday night.

The younger man reminded me much of Naomi's boyfriend, the older man mostly spoke Spanish and both appeared friendly. The younger guy asked how old our carpet was and when I told him ten years he exclaimed, "Wow! You must take really good care of your carpet."

No. We. Do. Not.

I mean, we only sometimes remove our shoes and we don't ask our company to do so. At one time, while Naomi (Miss Lover of Cats) lived here, we had six cats (draw your own conclusions). No, our living room carpet is a high grade berber kind which we got as a remnant so let this simply be a commercial touting 100% nylon berber. It lasts.

The job was completed in an hour and after I paid by check?  I did something which made me giddy the day's remainder. 

Being shy and also an in-the-bone penny-pincher, I considered giving the workers a tip, but I wavered, then decided I'd already paid enough by way of the bill. Yet as they were folding up their cleaning equipment outside, I took a quick peak at the stair carpet and that of the Tower Room upstairs, noted they'd been cleaned well, then raced back downstairs, grabbed a fistful of dollar bills, and ran outside. I thanked them again, handed over the dollars and they were very appreciative, sweet and surprised by it.

And well, that made my whole day.

I don't know why we think the object in Life is to get by with paying the least amount of money we can. Personally, I believe God loves us to be generous, sowing into other peoples' lives, even the money which we'd have spent on ourselves once again. 

Tom and I loving giving tips, actually. Once we tipped the delivery man who'd, for months, picked up many of Tom's boxes for his Ebay sales and he said no one had given him a tip in something like 8 years. Oh my. Made me extremely sorry for all the times I've talked myself out of tipping workers.

I believe that somehow it will matter in Heaven how much we gave to others here. True, not just money-wise! (You go talking about money and some people get all weird.)

But often I've seen this: if we can lose the fear of lack and, instead, freely give our money to bless others, we'll give more freely in other areas, also. Something happens-- a bondage breaks--when we understand the concepts of giving before we can receive. 

And the giddy joy in the midst of it all improves--and makes sweeter--ones oh so daily life.


*****


"Freely you have received, freely give." ... Matthew 10:8