It’s been an especially snowy winter across great swaths of North America and with each snowfall has come opportunities for generosity in action. That’s the theme of the “shovel it forward” campaign from Canadian Tire. As the caption on the YouTube video reads, “Acts of kindness, like shovelling snow for a neighbour, make Canadians who we are.”
I like that the video shows a parent teaching a child what it means to be generous — a father training a daughter in the way she should go. There’s a strong likelihood that, as she grows older, she won’t depart from what she learned on a cold, snowy morning.
How do we become generous? Practice, practice, practice, including sometimes with a shovel.
What has God placed in your hand today? How will you use it for the benefit of others?
Thanks very much for this reminder about the goodness of generosity, Rebekah. It brought me back. I can attest first-hand that when Canadian Tire urges its patrons to
“shovel it forward,” it means something! When I was a kid growing up in Ottawa, our family’s snow shovel was a massive thing called a “snow scoop” made by Canadian Tire designed to move Canadian-sized mountains of snow. I spent many evenings clearing our driveway and (after some parental prompting, admittedly) the driveways of senior citizens on our block. I hope by now that I’ve internalized these childhood reminders to be generous to others. Thanks again.
Thank you, Jim, for sharing your story of generosity learned with a Canadian Tire snow scoop in your hand. I didn’t realize you had Canadian roots, but I’ve recognized you as a generous person. Now I know where it began. Keep shoveling kindness!
Thanks Rebekah. It reminded me of the Mennonite Disaster Service volunteers who responded to the Buffalo snows last November. A short video here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNf3AEaNb3s
Thank you for sharing the MDS video, Kevin. The wonderful organization you head is generosity in action from start to finish.
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