Generosity and a story from Mother's life.

I was just thinking as to what being generous actually mean. Do we call it generosity when a person gives away something he has in excess? Would it be a higher degree of generosity if he is giving away a share of what he has? Then what should it be called if he is to give away whatever little he has without keeping anything for himself? Godliness?

I would like to share with you all an incident from the life of Mother Teresa. One evening a beggar came calling at her door. On seeing her he collected all the coins in his bowl and handed it over to her. She was actually confused. She knew that it was the only money he was having. He might go without dinner if she accept the money but he would be too hurt if she didn't. So she took the money. The beggar kissed her hand and left happily. Mother said that she valued this money more than the Nobel prize or anything else in this world.

Generosity should come from the heart and should be the direct result of your love and concern for the needy. One need not be rich to be generous. It is the mentality to share or sacrifice that matters. And that mentality to forget about yourself and think about others is in itself a religion apart.