The Lawn Mower Guy

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Once a week, every Tuesday morning, this guy with a portable lawn mower rouses us from sleep. He mows the church yard and convent grounds for free. I never saw him, receiving amounts for services he is rendering to the parish. He gladly takes a cup of coffee, when I offer it to him. This parishioner is an icon of what generosity is all about. I remember the words of St. Ignatius of Loyola, when he prayed for the gift of generosity: “Dearest Lord, teach me to be generous. Teach me to serve you as you deserve; To give and not to count the cost; To persevere, and not to heed the wounds; To labor, and not to seek rest; To give of myself and not to ask for reward, Except the reward of knowing That I am doing your will. Through Jesus Christ Our Lord, Amen” . The Germans have a beautiful word for generosity. They call it “Grossherzigkeit”, literally it means “making the heart big”. So anyone who gives freely has a big heart. Some people believe that they can only be generous when they hit that jackpot in the Lotto. I guess that is a very confined understanding of what generosity is all about. Everyone can share anything what he has: his time, talent, treasure, yes, even his life. Generosity then is an attitude of making one’s heart big; it is usually expressed in sharing things of value to others. St. Paul added to this giving the concept of cheerfulness. Generosity is giving cheerfully. Jesus encourages His disciples to be generous, when He urges them to go the “extra mile”. He said, if someone asked you to carry his load for a mile, make it two miles. If he slapped you on your left cheek, offer him the right cheek, as well. It is this attitude of going the extra mile that makes us distinctively Christians. This is the spirituality which is enshrined in the beatitudes of Jesus. Photo credit: Pixabay