Contribution To Life

[E-Dork]

There come's a time in everbody's life (normally when it's coming to an end) where you sit back and reflect most days about what positive impact you have had during your innings. I like to think that I've not done too bad but should/could really have done better. If you are not making a positive impact on anybody's lives where's the reward of living?

The most recent help I offered was to build a small, wooden bridge over a canal up North so the kid's could walk, rather than swim, to their school. This hardly cost a fortune and the look on the kids faces was a treat. On a smaller scale, my morning starts by going to see my little homeless guy and sharing a coffee and a cigarette with him. This is a selfish act really on my behalf as the feeling I recieve from this half hour interaction is far more rewarding for me than it is for him I'm sure.

I try and help orphans as much as I can having experienced the heartache of my parents deserting me and leaving me on the streets to fend for myself, eating food out of bins, hence this is where my strong opinion of 'if you can't afford children, don't bloody have them' comes from. Am still yet to help Barry's orphans as money is running a little tight of recent.

I tend to look back on the many years I wasted with indulgence, gambling and knowing it could all have been put to lot better use. Human nature affords us mistakes - it's the will to wan't to rectify them that determines what kind of person you are.

So the question I ask is...What are you doing, or would like to do in the future to enrich the lives of those less fortunate than we are? All stories, be it newspapers or websites, are obviously doom and gloom as it makes for more interesting reading for some reason (why is it we like to know the doom and gloom? - same as me and Richard wanting to learn about Serial Killers I suppose) but I'm having a little episode where it would be great to read about the kind, human nature that most of us possess.

[margaretcarnes]

I spend 2 days a week helping people to claim state benefits on forms they simply aren't able to understand - and checking to see if they can get any more cash to help them survive!
The majority of people I deal with are genuine, and (contrary to popular belief fuelled by the Uk government) are often incapable of working - or are retired and not getting what they are entitled to, because no-one tells them.
As well as bringing a little financial help to folks in need it also keeps the little grey cells in working order

[MrPlum]

My contribution to life was to remove a bridge from the village to teach the kids to swim.

[richard]

In early life it is take, take, take

In older life it's give, give, give

Maybe something to do with brain cell damage

Seriously though, I have been far more considerate to those about me who have less since living in Thailand

Hey you come into this world with FA and you leave it with FA so do some good and you may come back as a temple mouse

[Arcadian]

Not sure if I`ve done any good but pretty sure I havn`t done any harm.

[Siani]

I agree when we get older we all think that we should have done better, given more, said important things to loved ones before they died. Given more to charity. We all feel guilty that we did not do more for others and want to make amends in this life. All we can do now is our very best, without guilt, in order to help others as much as we can. At the same time we must realise we cannot help everyone, it is impossible. Even the super rich cannot do it, this is a tragic fact. Helping others does not always necessary have to involve money. I think that just realising that we should do more, it a good start. We know when we should do it, we do not have to be told. Whether it be, building a bridge, teaching children to swim, helping others to understand things in order to get what they are entitled to, is a step in the right direction. Last December a disabled man (a club foot, bad hips etc) I had known for years was housebound in the snow. The man had passed by my old shop for years, we always enjoyed the odd joke etc. We had become friends. He was however, a very private man, asking for nothing, not wanting help. I saw him daily limping home with a small carrier bag. He was a bit of a hermit out of choice, his house was scruffy, well filthy really, also he was very dirty. He was a good man, always going to funerals of local people, but really kept himself to himself. He liked it that way.
Anyway, during the snow, the pavements were icy, really terrible. I worried he might not have food. I took it upon myself to knock the door, something I had never done before. He came to the door looking like Howard Hughes, all his teeth rotten in his mouth. I asked him if he was OK... did he want bread, milk shopping? He said no thanks, I am OK...he looked thin, hungry, filthy, ill, really awful. What could I do? I knew he was not OK, so what could I do to help? Anyway I knew that contacting the social services, Red Cross would be useless, he would not let them in either. I went to the supermarket and bought things that would fit through his letter box. Ham, Mr Kiplings slices, teabags, packet soup, it was not much, but I felt better doing it.
I am going to try to do more, try become a nicer person and help others, I know I will never be perfect. At least even thinking the way we do is a step in the right direction.

[margaretcarnes]

That was a really thoughtful thing to do Siani - and most importantly it didn't make the guy feel that he was asking for help, which I think is a major problem for many people these days. Having to ask isn't the way people of a certain age were brought up. Which is why so many elderly folks go without in the UK anyway. Pride, as well as lack of information and some major failings in the health and social care systems.

Charities are a minefield though. I won't give cash to any - except by buying from Charity Shops - and donate things and time instead. But some are way too hard sell now. I got the full-on spiel from a rep of a Wild Life Trust recently, you know, the ones who want direct debits. No way - but he had a huge map of the area showing over 80 sites which the Trust takes care of. So I asked him how many of those sites have disabled access? Two. Enough said!

[Randy Cornhole]

Arcadian wrote -

Not sure if I`ve done any good but pretty sure I havn`t done any harm.

I can live with that...

[richard]

Maybe this says it all:

An Old Cherokee Saying...

This is probably the best I've ever heard life explained!


TWO WOLVES

One evening an old Cherokee told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people. He said, "My son, the battle is between two wolves inside us all.

"One is Evil - It is anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.

"The other is Good - It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion
and faith."

The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather: "Which wolf wins?" The old Cherokee simply
replied,



"The one you feed."

[MrPlum]

An Old Cherokee Saying...

Haven't heard it before Richard but first class.

I think you should start a 'Wisdom' thread.

[Siani]

Maybe this says it all:

An Old Cherokee Saying...

This is probably the best I've ever heard life explained!


TWO WOLVES

One evening an old Cherokee told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people. He said, "My son, the battle is between two wolves inside us all.

"One is Evil - It is anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.

"The other is Good - It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion
and faith."

The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather: "Which wolf wins?" The old Cherokee simply
replied,



"The one you feed."

That is very well put Richard, it says it all really. Abide by the "Good" a much as we can, make changes for the better. I think that once this is achieved we will have peace of mind, happiness and all that goes along with it. It is never too late to make changes in this life. It can also make a difference to other peoples lives too.

[richard]

An Old Cherokee Saying...

Haven't heard it before Richard but first class.

I think you should start a 'Wisdom' thread.

Not sure I'm the best qualified for that. Those that know me (you included) know I know what I should do but often tend to do the exact opposite. That's a public (boarding) school education for you. Rebel without a cause

New thread coming but not about wisdom

[Siani]

That was a really thoughtful thing to do Siani - and most importantly it didn't make the guy feel that he was asking for help, which I think is a major problem for many people these days. Having to ask isn't the way people of a certain age were brought up. Which is why so many elderly folks go without in the UK anyway. Pride, as well as lack of information and some major failings in the health and social care systems.

Charities are a minefield though. I won't give cash to any - except by buying from Charity Shops - and donate things and time instead. But some are way too hard sell now. I got the full-on spiel from a rep of a Wild Life Trust recently, you know, the ones who want direct debits. No way - but he had a huge map of the area showing over 80 sites which the Trust takes care of. So I asked him how many of those sites have disabled access? Two. Enough said!

I agree Mags, they are a minefield! Also how much does the charity actually end up when everyone has taken their cut out of it.

[Korkenzieher]

I agree Mags, they are a minefield! Also how much does the charity actually end up when everyone has taken their cut out of it.

Well, the way to work that out is quite simple, and I recommend it to anyone who questions whether giving to a high street charity is 'being charitable'.

Go to the charities commissioners website and search for whichever charity it is that takes your fancy.

http://www.charity-commission.gov.uk/

There might be several charities with similar names. Find the one you want eg 202918 Oxfam. I'm not picking on Oxfam, it is just an easy one to do.

Clicking on that link will take you to a pretty summary page. You can't work out a whole lot from it, but most (if not all) charities actually have their accounts available on the site. You will see a link to 'View Accounts'. What happens then depends on the charity to some extent, but you should either get seved up with a document which is their own accounts document, or some general profit and loss statement. Sit down with a calculator and work out if you can, where the income from the shops goes - the figure you are looking at is 'cost of sales'. As I say, I'm not picking on Oxfam - they aren't so bad - but there are some where the accounts look more like they have been hammered out on the back of an envelope.

OK. Back to Oxfam - on page 50, you will find a description of what support and governance costs are. On page 42, you will see a graphic showing that they total between them GBP 21m, roughly 10% of the entire spend. On page 38, you will notice only 2 negative figures - the cost of trading, and the cost of fundraising. Some place, in those 2 figures, are all the salaries. When you consider a 'cost of sales' figure, for an organisation which has no cost of stock given most of what they sell has been donated, and no local business rate charge, then I personally think it is fair to assume that a good proportion of the cost of sales is the money used to pay staffing costs, pensions, petrol in the chairman's Jag etc. etc.

In the event, for Oxfam, roughly 22% of what you spend ends up going to a charitable purpose. Only you can decide whether the work that they do makes supporting their activity through the shops is worthwhile. I should add, that I know folk who use the shops less for their charitable works, but more as cheap sources for 2nd hand clothing because of their own relatively chastened circumstances. That is almost by definition a win-win, but it does put them in direct competition with commercial enterprise, on a distinctly un-level playing field.