Do Your Givin’ While You’re Livin’
We are all savers, all of us! Why do we collect so much ’stuff’ and put it away never to see it again? The thought of moving can be paralyzing due to the myriad of collectables over the years. Some of my clients either spent their childhood during the great depression, or their parents were living that nightmare. One of the lasting effects from that period was the thought that it might happen again, and you can never save enough if that nightmare becomes a reality. It is truly understandable.
One of the greatest misconceptions, is that we know our loved ones would want to have a piece of our family history, or our personal property that was so meaningful to us. The following story illustrates this thought pattern: A mother of two, saved decorative plates. Each month she would give away one plate to each of her two sons. She wanted to enjoy the giving and see the expressions of joy when they received her precious gift. One day, she called one of her sons to inform him she would be giving him the pride of her collection this month. She was so excited! Her son was at work when she called, and he put her on hold. She was a patient lady but he forgot to press the hold button, so she could hear every word that he said. His brother was there as his mother listened on ‘hold’. ‘Hey Bill, mom is on the phone and she has more junk for us.’ She was surprised but luckily found humor in the situation.
The moral of this story, is that we may think we know what our family or friends would be happy to receive, but in most cases we miss the mark. Our family and friends will not want to disappoint us when they receive our treasures. Wouldn’t it make more sense to make a list of our items we want to give away, and send this list to all we want to share with. Then they can let you know in a timely fashion which pieces of your history they would be excited to receive. Make sure a deadline is set for them to remove the items they chose. Otherwise, the process of downsizing and giving may never materialize. One of my clients told his family after they made their choice of treasures, ‘Pick it up or you’ll find it on your front porch!’ He was assertive, but it worked.
Do your givin’ while you’re livin’ so you’re knowin’ where its’s goin!
Tags: collectables, decorative plates, family history, story