Giving is a good thing or not.. a debate.

Hi there Samsom1! I think that the best thing to do it is through explaining what the essence of charity is. First would be the sincere desire to help other people and be compassionate about wanting to make other people feel better. Although charity mostly relates to giving material things or finances as form of help, there are other things that may be given in its place such as prayers, time and effort. Instead of giving own money, people may get involved or even host fund raisers, but in a kid's case, we can start by bringing them with us on such events so that they will see how these things work. They can render their services and even some of their time like in what volunteers do in Habitat for Humanity wherein volunteers help in constructing homes for the beneficiaries and also in Greenpeace wherein you will be able to help in saving the environment by just sending an e-mail to the authorities. In a way, these too are ways of being charitable.

Look up the lyrics to the 'Little Drummer Boy' which is a Christmas song. It tells the story of a poor little boy who had nothing to give except that he could play the drums for baby Jesus. He played his best. We all have something to give - we have our time and talents and our heart - even if we don't have money to give. Just because people are financially poor doesn't mean they have to be spiritually poor. Play the 'Little Drummer Boy' song to a small child - they will be able to relate to the message of this Christmas song. We all can give to others.

Charity does not always imply a monetary contribution. Sure that helps but sometimes its best to just give some time to someone in need. There are many people that just need someone to talk to. I tend to get my kids around each year and head to a nursing home or some kind of homeless set up and we donate time. We also do some monetary charity stuff as well. Toys for Tots is a favorite. They dont understand giving toys away to other kids yet. My oldest is starting to get the reasons why but my youngest is still learning.

I feel it depends on the society people and cadre to give or not and it is all about particular mindset

You can still teach a child charity though he has none to share. It doesn't not mean that because he has nothing to share then Charity can't be teach. Charity starts at home , small things like even sharing to siblings food or anything may it be small or big , that is already charity. Sharing doesn't only mean those material thing . Those can't be bought by money like time , wisdom , services are the most precious ones to be shared. If a family is poor but then doing services in the community that is already teaching kids about charity. So it doesn't need one to be rich to know what is charity.

If we're talking about a child that has regular access to a computer and Internet, I would recommend http://www.freerice.com/ - it's a website where educational questions will be asked and for every correct question, 10 grains of rice is donated to World Food Programme to help fight world hunger. Through this, not only the child can learn the idea of giving to the less fortunate, he/she can also brush up on his/her English/Mathematics/Science etc skills depending on what subjects he/she decided to play. There's always the option of bringing a child to an orphanage or an old folks' home. The child can then see for himself/herself that not everybody lives comfortable lives (assuming the child is from a household that doesn't have to worry about whether they will get their next meal). Volunteering at these places is free too, so cost should not be a problem unless the orphanage/old folks' home is far away from the child's residence. I'm reminded of the tale A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett. There was a chapter where Sara, after losing her fortune and forced to work, gave away most of her buns to a beggar child who was hungrier than she was. Even though Sara at that point was poor, she still gave away what she had to others because to her, others needed it more than her. I think this part of the story can serve to illustrate that sometimes, you don't have to be rich to give. And even if you cannot give anything that requires money, you can always volunteer for free at the places mentioned above. Giving is not just about giving physical gifts, but sometimes attention and care can be as precious a gift as well.