Take 5 Monday: Generosity, Happiness, and the True Story of Secret Santa
Happy Take 5 Monday: 1 Kindness Quote, 1 Gratitude Thought, 1 Kindness Habit Idea, 1 Kind Act, and 1 Question for you to consider this week…
1 Kindness Quote:
“There is no exercise better for the heart than reaching down and lifting people up.”
~ John Holmes
1 Gratitude Thought:
“Whether I have a lot or a little, I always have enough to give to others in need.”
1 Kindness Habit Idea…backed by science 🧪:
‘Tis the season for generosity. 🎁 According to a study by the University of Zurich and another by Dr. Elizabeth Dunn, you can increase your happiness by giving to others. Four key discoveries:
The level of happiness wasn’t contingent on the amount given away.
People felt happier when they gave something away instead of doing something for themselves.
Even if someone was struggling they felt better when they gave to others.
To sustain and build up happiness, you need to create generosity habits. 💪
Here are a couple of ideas to help you make generosity a habit.
Ask yourself, is there some way that what I’m doing right now for myself could be used to help others as well? Examples could be as simple as making extra cookies 🍪 to give away or asking a neighbor if they needed anything from the grocery while you were there. It doesn’t have to be about giving away money.
When you are about to treat yourself to something small, treat someone else, too.
1 Kind Act….Moses Elder and the Hundred Dollar Bills
I love finding stories about individual kind acts that go on to make a big difference. So I got excited when this cool story popped up about Moses Elder, a homeless man in Phoenix, who handed out $100 bills to strangers. It seemed like the perfect story to share with you…that is, until I started digging deeper.
The story about Moses takes place in 2018. Every year an anonymous business man goes around the country posing as Santa’s Secret Elf 🎅, giving away $100 bills to strangers. In 2018 he went to Phoenix at Christmas time, found Moses, and asked him to hand out the money instead. (Click here to see Moses’ day!)
He gave Moses $3,000 and said, “Give the money to whoever you see fit.”
After spending the day giving away money to others, Moses said,
“Today we changed a lot of peoples’ lives. But I believe that my life has changed the most.”
Pretty inspiring story, right? Well, that’s what I thought. But it turns out, there’s a story within the story….and it’s even better.
Imposter?
The Secret Santa Elf from 2018 wasn’t the original Secret Santa Elf. Let’s just call him Secret Santa Elf II. The original Secret Santa Elf has a story that’s hard to believe…
In 1971, Larry Stewart wandered into the Dixie Diner in Houston, Mississippi. He was broke, living in his car, and hungry. He ordered a big breakfast. But when it came time to pay, he pretended that he had lost his wallet. Ted Horn, the owner, saw the situation. He came over near Larry’s table, bent down and pretended to pick something up. He placed a $20 bill on Larry’s table. “I think you must have dropped this,” he said, with a warm smile. In 1971 that $20 paid for Larry’s meal and gas for his car. I think it paid for even more…..for gratitude and hope and a new way of thinking.
After leaving the Dixie Diner, Larry vowed that if he ever became rich he would honor Ted Horn by paying it forward to others.
As amazing as it seems, by the 1980’s Larry had made a fortune in the telecom industry. He was worth more than 5 million dollars. He began wandering the streets in Kansas City at Christmas time, randomly giving away $100 bills to strangers who seemed in need. No one knew who he was and Larry liked it that way. He became known as the Secret Santa Elf.
Over the years he gave away more than a million dollars. He also inspired others who were more well known to become elves, including Buck O’Neil, George Brett, Oprah Winfrey, and Dick Butkus.
Sadly, in 2006 Larry was diagnosed with esophageal cancer. His close friend visited him in the hospital and asked, “Larry, do you have any regrets?”
“Yes,” Larry said. “I wish I could have helped more people.”
On January 12, 2007 Larry Stewart passed away at the age of 58.
Perhaps you can guess who became Secret Santa Elf II.
Here are the final thoughts from our still anonymous Secret Santa Elf II:
“You know, kindness is a bridge between all people. And so if you’re ever down and you want to lift yourself up, go do something kind for somebody.”
1 Kindness Question for you:
If you could do a Random Act of Kindness today, what would it be?
Check out our new Gift and Book Program
Kindness Magnet launched in April, 2021 and has become tremendously popular. I guess we all need a little more kindness in this world! A great way to practice a little generosity is through our new Gift and Book Program. I hope you’ll check it out! I’d love to know what you think and get your suggestions!
May your week be filled with kindness. 💜
I really enjoyed your heart-warming stories today Heather. Excellent stuff!
Great post! Lovely video. It made me cry. And then it made me feel GOOD! Thank you, Heather.