The Expression of One’s Values

 

Love is the expression of one’s values, the greatest reward you can earn for the moral qualities you have achieved in your character and person, the emotional price paid by one man for the joy he receives from the virtues of another.
Ayn Rand

What do you value?

I have spent the past 8 months or so really focusing on this question. In my humble opinion we humans place our energy, time, money,love and effort in things that we value. So I asked my self –Desiree, What do you value? Like all great modern day thinkers I immediately went to Google!

Wikipedia tells me the following:

Values tell people what is good, beneficial, important, useful, beautiful, desirable, appropriate…etc. They answer the question of why people do what they do. Values help people solve common human problems for survival. Over time, they become the roots of traditions that groups of people find important in their day to day lives. Values can be positive or negative; some are destructive.

So what are the values that make a difference in your life, in your community? What are the roots of tradition that you embrace with gusto and integrate in your every day existence? There is incredible value in being of service to others.These should be  values not responsibilities. I think we sometime get the two confused.  Responsibilities  don’t leave us excited. Values do. Responsibilities do not  always leave us energized. Values do. Pearl Buck says that to serve is beautiful BUT only if done with a joyful heart and a free mind. I say the same about values– they should always leave  you with a joyful heart and free mind.  Your values should help determine when,where and how you will serve others.

Articulating these values is truly a transformative process and I would encourage each of you to take sometime  and engage in this worthy exercise.  So let me share with you what I learned over the past few months.

I value adventure. The quest, the search, the answer, the gamble, the experiment are all critical elements for a happy Desiree.  I love to travel and have a really high tolerance for change. I invest my resources in travel that allow me to volunteer globally in part to meet this important part of my essential self. I use my sense of adventure to travel with a purpose. I especially love  open air markets in  developing countries, so many things to see, taste and touch and  for me a really important way to feel connected  with the local culture and community.

I value teaching. Education, information, knowledge and enlightenment are all highly valued in my home.  I am touchy feely and just on this side of woo-hoo, but I also love data. I love it because it helps me determine where  and how I should use my limited resources. I have a set amount of money that I tithe every year to organizations.  Being an educated donor on issues of poverty, violence against women and girls and international development help me stretch my dollars.

I value relationships.Umm have you met me? If you have read anything on this site or seen my gazillion tweets then you know this to be very true. Its one of the reasons I love twitter. I just adore when I can crack the nut and take someone from a follower—> friend—->volunteer—->advocate—->donor. That does not happen in 140 characters, I do not care how great a writer you are and it does not happen overnight. That only happens when people are bonded, linked, nurtured and truly feel like they are part of a community. It happens with time.

I value contributing.  I invest my time in activities that serve, assist and facilitate. I want to use my power to minister to and strengthen communities and families. It took me a while , almost 44 years to accept the word minister. I use it in the purest , most loving way possible.  In contributing I want to guide, inspire and encourage locally and globally.

Do any of these resonate for you?

Check out your bank statement, it will absolutely let you know what you value. But because I am greedy, I want you to look a little deeper, not just where you invest your money but where you invest your heart  and soul. Let love lead the way.

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