changing the world

I don't know, I'd just think of somebody I know or heard about who could use some help and pass it to them.

Buying and giving gift cards is a good idea. So is putting food in collection baskets, giving to the food bank, and paying for the next guy's meal when we can. Also giving people coupons we know they can use, or giving of our time in volunteer situations. I think many people pay it forward without realizing it. The spirit of selfless giving can change the world.

I understand what you're trying to get at. Doing one small thing for one person, can lead to that one person doing something small for someone else, and so on and so forth. I think something like gift cards for grocery stores is a great way to give to others that need the extra hand.. Something like that is hard to explain, with WHO to give it to and whatnot. Some people may not take it all that well, if you try to give them a "hand out".. I know that's not what you would consider it, but you understand what I'm saying, right? You just start with someone random.. Someone you think may need the extra hand. There's nothing wrong with trying to help.

I don't quite understand your discussion as its confusing? Changing the world how? Can you be more clear?

If I do something kind for one person that person will in turn do a nice kind deed for another and so on thus creating a beautiful chain of goodwill. It could go on forever and the world would indeed be changed. It could be anything that anyone needs; I think it is a matter of getting into the giving frame of mind and being vigilant of how one can help at any time.

There are plenty of ways to do this that exist already. I have two homeless charities that I give financial support monthly with extra at Christmas. Whenever there is an international disaster we have appeals to which we can respond. There are lots of charity shops in our town centre, to which we can donate, and from which we can buy. We can also donate our time as volunteers in these shops and doing other unpaid work. I spent years volunteering on the board of a college that gave a second chance for education to women. Charities here deliver bags door to door for people to fill with unwanted items, or things they wish to donate, before they return to collect them. Paying it forward has been going on for a very long time, but the language is different. Hopefully this will promote it further so that more and more people take part.

The idea is very simple.You an give someone something without any expectation on return the favor. It can be time, money or item. In fact many of us are already paying forward without even thinking. Charity works the same, as many people are giving without asking for tax credit. Giving it forward is very simple only if given with open heart.

I tithe. I am on a Paper Diet, trying to reduce my consumption from the average American consumption of 58,371 to 5,937. I'm reporting on it for E Magazine. I try to remember to turn my lights and TV off, but I am not so good at remembering this as I aim to be.

I never saw the movie--the ending I heard was too heartbreaking--but the concept is wonderful. I think that anything we do as a kindness to others should be followed by a request to "do this for someone else". I let a hurried-looking man in front of me in line last week and he thanked me, I just told him to pass the favor on to someone else in a hurry sometime. Not a lot of people seem to know "pay it forward" for some reason. I don't quite understand your suggestion of cards, except to hand out when we give to others. If you're talking about gift cards, you're putting control of them into the hands of cashiers as I understand it. That can be mostly good but there are enough people that would take advantage of it to make a bad name for it. It's all about the Golden Rule but that concept has been largely lost, too. Same as Karma isn't understood by a lot of people that were born after 1980.