It was just prior to Christmas. The bus rolled into the grass field surrounded by the high rise commission flats in Melbourne. The bus stopped and the team transformed the area into a hot spot where children and parents began to flock. Face painting, ice cream, clowns, balloons and the bus.
As children filed onto the bus at one end they stepped off at the other end of the bus with a wrapped gift box. Christmas had arrived for these children… and they were loving it.
On the bus, one man holding the hand of his daughter, filed through the bus. His daughter was now juggling the box of goodies. One of the volunteers, with a smile, placed into the man’s hands a men’s gift package. He was taken back and in broken english, stuttered, “Oh no.. just for my girl… not for me?!”
But he was assured that the gift in his trembling hands was for him.
He burst into tears, overwhelmed with joy.
In all his life he had never been given a Christmas gift!
A businessman standing near by was struck by this scene. He was one of the many who had silently made the day possible. The delight on that one man’s face cemented his habit of generous giving.
As the wise saying goes: It is indeed better to give than receive.