The Gift of Giving

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The Gift Of Giving


For me, the real gift of giving comes from taking time out for someone else. It doesn’t have to be a long period of time just enough to feel comfortable giving while at the same time, long enough for you to absorb the result of your action.

One moment I am particularly grateful for regarding time I took out for someone else, took place in the early months of the year 2000. I had recently been involved in “Amnesty International” and would do what I could regarding writing letters on behalf of those whom Amnesty International considered to be innocent thus being crimes against humanity.

Although most letters I wrote/e-mailed pertained to people from different countries/governments around the world, one in particular happened to hit real close to home one day. It was then that I learned of a black man who, along with two other people, had been indicted for murder of killing two others. Per Amnesty International’s information, there was no proof linking this particular man to the murders that they had informed me of. The very lengthy letter gave detailed information about the man in question as well as the events that took place which the man had found himself a part of.

Although I, in the past, had no problem writing on behalf of others, this was the first time I would be writing on behalf of someone who may or may not have played a roll in the killing of two other men. All of the other letters I had written were more political regarding what Amnesty International would define as false imprisonments of individuals against there governments.

Understanding a rebel against one’s government because they don’t like the way things are going in their country can be at times difficult to understand and does need real investigation to fully grasp what that particular government is doing that the rebel feels is so bad. When it comes to a murder case, it’s pretty clear what the stakes are and how the person/people charged as well as the victim’s families will be affected.

I have, for years, considered karma as a leading force for me to make a decision thus the karma that might spill from my action/this particular situation, could come back in one way or another and bite me. After much consideration, I finally decided to write a letter to the governor of my state and request that she review the case with much detail and consider the possible idea that the man I was writing for be recognized as innocent of the charges pressed against him.

As I wrote the letter, I felt a surge of energy come over me therefore the more I wrote, the more I felt compelled to request that this man I was writing for be found not guilty of the events I had learned about. I not only wrote the letter to my government official, I clicked on the signature page of the petition that Amnesty International had sent me to “sign off on”. By the time I had finished writing my letter I was alive with passion and curiosity regarding the outcome of this particular case. I followed the news when ever I could until the day came when I learned that the man I had written for had the murder charges against him dismissed.

Shortly after that particular case, because I allowed it to drain me of my energy, energy I freely gave away, I stopped being a part of Amnesty International and focused my attention on another cause I felt strongly for, advocating for Gay and Lesbian Rights.

As time would pass, I wouldn’t think much more of the day I wrote that particular letter or the days that shortly passed leading up to the moment I felt so sure of. In fact it would be eleven years latter when I would again focus just a moment in time, on a particular outcome that in some mysterious way, I played a roll in.

It was just this past week when I learned of other events regarding the same man I had written the letter for. In the news, this particular man had learned of a tragic incident that took the lives of one boy’s mother and siblings. This particular man that I had gone to bat for, eleven years earlier informed the press that he vowed to help the 10-year old boy and made this clear to the boy himself.

The man I went to bat for, the stranger I never knew, is Baltimore Ravens linebacker, Ray Lewis and the ten year old boy he is going to help is the survivor of the event whose mother drove her car into the Hudson River in April of this year that took the lives of his mother, younger sister, and two younger brothers.

I have said often and maybe not often enough, the millions of moments in our everyday lives always have a consequence. When we take a moment out of those millions of moments to focus on, the consequence, I believe, comes back ten fold based on the energy I have put into it. How we treat others will, without a doubt, affect how those we treat, treat others. First chances, I believe, are gifts given to us all while second chances are blessings, big and small. Whether or not I was/am correct regarding my decision eleven years ago is unknown and whether or not my particular letter was the deciding factor regarding Mr. Lewis’s outcome, to be truthful is not important. What is important is simply knowing that I, although a minuscule piece of the overall picture, am a part of the lives of this man and this boy and for me, that is a gift I am proud to have and will continue to share.

Blessed Be-