A healthy deposit of gratitude and love

Today I deposited $3000 into a bank account that wasn’t my own.

Handing over such a hefty sum to the Cancer Council, after raising it at a Girls’ Night In event on Saturday, made me reflect on how lucky I am.

Of course there’s the obvious thing to be thankful for – good health. (Bryan may joke that he’s “dying” due to the dreaded man flu that plagues him, but let’s face it, he’s not!)

But more than that, depositing the cash reminded me of something else.

That PEOPLE are AWESOME.

Every year for almost a decade, friends and strangers have been willingly handing over their cash to me. They buy a ticket in this raffle, and a ticket in that raffle. They hand over cash donations, they bid in auctions – they are generally not shy when it comes to supporting a great cause.

And among the most generous are local business owners.

This year’s cocktail party fundraiser featured no shortage of gift vouchers for goods and services across Hobart – travel experiences, spa, hair and beauty treatments, photography sessions and fitness classes, just to name a few. Prize hampers were piled high with donated goods, and my event was conducted among a sea of floral colour and candlelight thanks to the handiwork of a local event management business.

Internet shopping is so easy these days (who doesn’t love piling items into a virtual shopping cart on the other side of the world and having parcels arrive effortlessly on the doorstep soon after?). And yes, items can often be found cheaper online.

Buying from an anonymous vendor from the comfort of your couch may have its perks (hello, comfy PJs!) but it’s not the same as having the smiling owner of your local café or retail store greet you by name, give your child’s chubby cheeks a familiar squeeze and chat about the weather as they prepare your juice or coffee order (which they’ve memorised) or find the perfect pair of shoes in your size (also memorised).

Last week I got chatting to a staff member at my local bottleshop and when he heard I was organising a fundraiser he threw in a free bottle of wine to raffle off. I didn’t even have to ask.

IMG_9903a — Just a small selection of the donations I received this year.

Tasmania may be small, geographically – but I think Tasmanians have big hearts.

Too many people get hung up on the doom and gloom of life, and are quick to ask: ‘’What kind of world are our children growing up in?’’ whenever they hear something awful happening in the news. Yes, horrible things do happen in the world sometimes. But take a quick glance through the history books – there have always been evil people doing evil things…war, famine, genocide…the list goes on.

I think it’s important to remember that there’s also a lot of good in the world.

Love. Compassion. Generosity.

I still have an email from 2008, written to friends after one of my earliest fundraisers, where I raved about raising $500. I thought it was an epic tally. Fast forward to the present day and my annual event consistently raises around $3000 – and as much as $5000 some years – thanks to the kindness of people around me.

I’m not saying that this generosity isn’t present in bigger cities.

But I do think there’s something special about the small nature of Hobart and Tasmania’s close-knit community.

So next time something crappy happens in the world, remember that there’s a lot of good stuff happening too – every day that we have on this planet is a blessing and we really are lucky live in a great place, full of kind-hearted people.