“Of Course You Did”

I recently got in trouble with Sarah. I made her a promise.....then I let her down. No, it wasn't some monumental, marriage-critical promise. She asked me to buy coffee beans. For years, we've had a running argument in our house. I would open an Amazon box to discover coffee beans. "Sarah, we literally own a coffee company!!!! We buy some of the best coffee in the world.....and we get an employee discount on it!!!" I even went so far as to tell her that I'll immediately throw away any random coffee she buys outside of our shop. Dramatic of me, I know.

Anyway, she's come around and now honors the fact that we should probably buy the beans from our own company. Props to her. It might have taken three years, but better late than never, I'm told.

In accordance with our new agreement, if she ever needs coffee beans, I'll make sure to pick them up when I'm at the shop. Recently, she made a request for coffee. We were almost out at home, and she needed me to bring her the goods.

I drove to the shop, purchased a bag of coffee, and sat down at a table to get some work done. Over the next hour, I ended up in conversation with a couple of young ladies who were visiting the shop for the first time. One of the women saw my bag of retail coffee and asked, "Is that any good? I've heard good things about that brand, but I've never tried it. I was thinking about buying some."

Toward the end of the conversation, I handed her my bag of coffee and told her to enjoy it. She was surprised....and grateful. It was a little weird to her that a total stranger would hand over something they'd just purchased for themselves, but I'm glad she went along with it.

Fast forward to me showing up at home, empty-handed. "Did you get coffee?" Sarah asked.

"I did!!!! But then I gave it to another woman."

"Of course you did."

That last "of course you did" made my day. It wasn't an "of course" that I'd gift something to another woman, but an acknowledgment that my randomly handing something to a stranger didn't even move the needle for her. She almost expects it. First, I love that she's learned to expect that from me, and second, I love that she's cool with it.

Generosity should have no limits. If I walk out of the grocery store with a bunch of food, and I encounter someone on the way to my car who needs it more than I do, I give it. Period. No questions asked. That's how life ought to be lived. No rules. No exceptions. No buts. No justifications. No excuses. Generosity always wins.

You might not be someone who would elicit an "of course you did" response from a loved one......yet. However, that identity can be right around the corner. Just keep saying "yes" to generosity and see what happens.

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