Give, give, give – what is the point of having experience, knowledge or talent if I don’t give it away? Or having stories if I don’t tell them to others? Of having wealth if I don’t share it? I don’t intend to be cremated with any of it! It is in giving that I connect with others, with the world, with the divine.
– Isabel Allende
Thank you to Kyran Pittman, on whose lovely blog Planting Dandelions I first read these words.
This reminds of something Annie Dillard wrote at the end of her book on writing – The Writing Life.
“Of of the few things I know about writing is this: spend it all, shoot it, play it, lose it, all, right away, every time. Do not hoard what seems good for a later place in the book, or for another book; give it all, give it now. The impulse to save something good for a better place later is the signal to spend it now. Something more will arise for later, something better…. the impulse to keep to yourself what you have learned is not only shameful, it is destructive. Anything you do not give freely and abundantly becomes lost to you. You open your save and find ashes.”
What a lovely quote, thank you for sharing!
xoxo
Isabel Allende has been/is one of my very favorite authors…her storytelling shines.
I modified the poem “What I want my daughter to know when she is 10” It was for my granddaughter is was turning 18 and graduating high school. I think it turned out really nice
Oh, I am so glad to hear that!! xox