Earlier this month, my wife and I celebrated our 28th wedding anniversary with a visit to Longwood Gardens. One of its hallmark attractions is the fountain and light show — a breathtaking display where streams of water dance in perfect synchronization with music.
If you’ve never experienced it, it’s truly a spectacle of beauty and precision.
As I watched the fountains, I was struck by how they form a self-sustaining cycle. A body of water supplies the fountain, yet the water flowing through the fountain continually returns to replenish the source. It’s a beautiful rhythm of giving and receiving — and it reminded me of another powerful cycle: gratitude and generosity.
In today’s blog, we’re kicking off our November blog series by looking at the source of generosity — and then how we can each put it into practice in everyday life.
A Season for Gratitude
As we enter November, our thoughts naturally turn toward Thanksgiving — a time set aside to pause and reflect on all we’ve been given. Gratitude is more than a feeling; it’s an awareness of abundance, a recognition that our lives are continually replenished by blessings large and small.
Gratitude is like the deep spring that fills the fountain from within.
It sustains and refreshes us, shaping how we see the world. When that inner source overflows, it takes on a visible form — generosity.
Generosity: Gratitude in Motion
Generosity is the flowing water — the outward expression of gratitude. When we feel thankful for what we have, we’re more inclined to share our time, talents, and resources with others.
That act of giving doesn’t just benefit those around us; it deepens our own sense of joy and meaning.
But when gratitude dries up — when we lose sight of how much we’ve been given — the flow of generosity slows as well. Just as a fountain depends on its source, generosity depends on a grateful heart.
A Call to Give
This month, The Master’s Minute will focus on different facets of generosity. At Master’s, we believe that every blessing we receive is given to us so that we can be a blessing to others.
Yet, it’s easy in the busyness of life to become self-focused or forgetful of the good around us. Our hope over the next few weeks is to encourage each of us to live with open hands — to be more generous with our time, our abilities, and our finances.
If you’d like to explore ways to practice generosity more intentionally, our team at Master’s would love to have that conversation with you. We invite you to reach out — we’d be honored to help you discover the joy that flows from a grateful, generous life.
