Pay It Forward

Pay It Forward... what does that phrase mean to you?

If you haven't seen the 2000 movie that is based on a novel by the same name, called "Pay It Forward", then it's a MUST see! My Mom bought this movie a few months ago and while I was helping her clean on Friday, we came across it. I sat there reading the back of the cover and couldn't believe I hadn't see it before. I put it with my things to go home so I could watch it. Because it has been such a rainy weekend, I had some time to catch up on "movie time".

As I watched it, I began to think about how something like this could really change the world. In the movie, a 12yr old little boy is given a Social Studies project. His project is to come up with a plan that will change the world through direct action. He comes up with a plan to "pay it forward" by doing a good deed for three people. The only thing asked in return is for those three people to "pay it forward"...thus becoming a world-wide action. You will have to watch the movie to find out what happens because I hate movie spoilers...LOL! I will tell you to be sure you have tissues!

After the movie was over, I wiped my tears and I really began to think about the whole idea of "paying it forward". There have been so many times in my life where I've helped someone and when they said "What do I owe you?" ...I replied with "Nothing!" I did it...just because. How many times has this happened to you? You do a kind deed for someone less fortunate, just for the sake of doing it...not because you HAD to but because you WANTED to. And then something would happen and you get "paid back"...not the same day....not the next day....but when you least expected it. I always knew when it was my payback and I'd accept it but then I'd turn right around and do something else for someone new.

We have a "Guardian Angel" that is sending us several months worth of pump supplies. This person never once asked for anything in return and never offered to "sell" them to us at a discount. In my mind, this is one of those acts of "paying it forward". My job now is to pay it forward to someone else that may need the help. It would be so nice if the whole world acted on this idea instead of being so selfish. This person could have kept those pump supplies in the closet and let them expire and then thrown them out with the trash but instead they are in the mail to us to put to good use. Think back 30-50+ years ago, when a neighbor helped a neighbor. A community ran smooth with the "little man". Someone baked, someone sewed, someone worked the garden, everyone took care of everyone elses kids, things grown in the garden were shared, animals raised on the farm were shared and it all just worked! It's really sad that our kids won't ever get to experience that.

One thing is for sure... my girls WILL learn to "pay it forward"!