Saturday, July 10, 2010

Amorie & the Happiness of Giving


The more we connect as neighbors, the more birthdays we seem to be celebrating on the block!  This weekend, neighborkid Amorie dropped by with a reminder that it soon will be his cousin Deandre’s birthday.  As we thought together about how to mark the occasion, Amorie pulled out a bag with small toys and favors like superballs, kazoos, and mazes in it.  Originally, this was a prize bag for neighborhood parties, but Amorie suggested that one or two of these prizes could be wrapped up for Deandre for his birthday.  On the heels of that idea, he suggested that for each neighborkid’s birthday, a couple of toys could be wrapped up as presents by fellow neighborkids, and then delivered to the birthday girl or boy as a surprise. 


Amorie then picked out and wrapped a couple of toys for Deandre and placed them on the windowsill for Deandre to discover the next time he visits.  We’ll see what comes of this latest innovation!


Amorie’s actions are a great example of how “Happier people give more and giving makes people happier.  This is what folks at the Harvard Business School reported in the paper they published last year titled, “Feeling Good about Giving.”  Amorie was thrilled by his idea of giving presents to Deandre and his fellow neighborkids, and this idea grew out of delight, not out of feeling sorry for anybody.

What would it mean to follow Amorie’s example in a variety of ways here at La Casa Chica, and on the block in Central-Cocoanut?  Hmm…

No comments:

Post a Comment