Small Acts of Great Importance
Late November plays host to one of my favorite days all year. After the excess of Black Friday and Cyber Monday during which all my friends in retail work themselves to the point of exhaustion, comes Giving Tuesday. Beginning in 2012 this movement of radical generosity has done so much to rally folks around the world in acts of mutuality, solidarity, and reciprocity. Giving Tuesday is a global platform for all kinds of efforts to balance consumer culture with an organized time and place to give, support, and engage. From a purely social media perspective it may seem like a day of fundraising, (and platforms like Facebook have been helpful in directing and matching billions of dollars for charitable causes in the last few years) but the deeper purpose of Giving Tuesday is to “unleash the power of people and organizations to transform their communities and the world”. I’m drawn to this because it is very much values-aligned with the LifeSchoolHouse movement and the way we are approaching this work in the world.
There is also a lesser known but Canadian connection to Giving Tuesday: Buy Nothing Day actually began first, launching in Vancouver in 1992 as an alternative approach to Black Friday, sharing the same date but offering very different activities. Organized by artist Ted Dave, the Buy Nothing movement offers gatherings and peaceful protests like the Credit Card Cut Up stations set up in malls, Zombie Walk demonstrations, and has sparked a recent rise in Buy Nothing projects that are popping up locally too - check here to see if there is a Buy Nothing group near you: https://buynothingproject.org/
Every year when I see Giving Tuesday/Buy Nothing activities I reflect on the resources we have been assembling at LifeSchoolHouse to honor and carry forward this tradition in our own way. Repair Cafes, skills swaps and shares, and of course our monthly Makers Swaps where upcycled and handmade creations have become the main source of gifts for family and friends. This year tea made from locally dried herbs, homemade soaps, socks, and notebooks, beach glass art, macrame, and ceramics will be under my tree, and I know every one of these talented makers personally, which is a gift in and of itself!
One of the newest LifeSchoolHouse activities inspiring a sense of ‘giving back’ and ‘community support’ has been the work of the “Action in Community Team”. The ACT group is a self-organizing handful of community folks who have decided to work together on independent projects like the Community Gardens, Tool Libraries and more. Each of the classes, swaps, gardens and cafes are powerful examples of community acts of mutuality, solidarity, and reciprocity too!
Now that we are moving into the holiday season and thinking about gifts for friends and neighbours, teachers, and other caring folks in our circles, perhaps the greatest gift we can give this holiday season is hope. Hope that small acts of kindness, support, exchange, and attributing value to labours of art and love IS enough to change the world. One garden, swap, skills exchange, and cup of tea at a time we can be the change we want to see in the world - more than just one day a year!
“The best way to DO is to BE” - Lao Tzu
Written by Jennifer DeCoste