[Music]
just days after Christmas home with my
family and ambulance takes me to the
hospital I ended up being fine or was I
I asked myself from the outside looking
in everything seemed good I was the
mother of two amazing boys had a
terrific successful husband a big house
I threw great dinner parties volunteered
at school practiced yoga meditation and
being generous was a high priority in my
heart simply put I wore my mask well my
version of generosity was coming at a
price giving meant getting and yes it
and truly meanness are you familiar with
that kind the conditional kind the one
you say it and you instantly feel it in
your stomach you feel a sense of dread
but you just smile and continue my
version of generosity had the currency
of righteousness resentment and
victimhood and in many ways it felt more
like a competition of who was gonna do
more for each other there was a sense of
emptiness and exhaustion that panic
attack woke me up my way of being and
giving wasn’t sustainable and it wasn’t
until my forties that I discovered that
generosity isn’t just about giving it’s
also about receiving and when we are
courageous with our generosity we feel
alive and connected Anthony taught me
about generosity that’s bigger I mean
the kind of generosity that generates
deep connection and ask you to be bigger
than you even know yourself to be
he lives in Nairobi Kenya and I said yes
to a program that links brand-new yoga
teachers from Kenya with mentor
from around the world I experienced just
differently this time I was out of my
comfort zone I felt excited scared and I
began asking new questions like Who am I
to be mentoring a yoga teacher in Kenya
what do I have to offer were so
different I came up with a mantra during
that time whenever fear paralyzed me or
I doubt myself it’s not about me
it’s bigger saying it was my way of
getting myself out of the way and
serving a higher intention each month
Anthony and I connected for one hour on
skype my job as his mentor was to
develop and deepen his journey as a yoga
teacher
he was 19 at the time he had just come
off the streets from stealing and
dealing drugs he had lost his father to
alcoholism and his mother to AIDS I
remember our first call we just spent
most of our time trying to understand
one another his English was rough and my
Swahili was non-existent and vulnerably
we instantly connected we knew from that
first call that our relationship was
about serving something bigger than each
of us it was a bringing unity and peace
and freedom to our communities through
yoga Anthony showed up on each call
hungry to receive my mentoring and I
gave him everything that I could for my
heart his receptivity lit up my
generosity and I often left the calls
thinking whose mentoring who here I
realized that when we allow ourselves to
receive from our giving the supply that
we have to give is limitless we feel
alive and we discover a deeper sense
into our true nature as human beings
Anthony was unstoppable his courage and
his commitment to not letting fear stop
him anywhere in his life transformed me
his courage gave me courage his
commitment to giving to his communities
through yoga encouraged me to do the
same generosity is so powerful it has a
way of rippling out and inspiring more
generosity so later that year I said yes
to going to Kenya for my first service
trip my friends and family questioned my
decision why in the world would I go to
Kenya they thought it was dangerous
I had two kids I leave them with my
husband for two weeks they were just 5
in 8 I questioned my decision and still
the mantra it’s not about me it is
bigger my yes continued until my husband
and my boys were driving me to the
airport and my husband received a call
that his father had just lost his battle
to cancer immediately we turned around
the car went home and I said I’m
canceling the trip after 24 hours of
Tears pain and lots of conversation with
him and his family whose only words were
you have to go or we’ve got this I
received and I went to Kenya I’ll say
that it stretched me well beyond my
comfort zone to receive their generosity
but I did it and as they stepped on that
plane I knew that my husband wouldn’t
have it any differently
it was incredibly generous for him to
support me so receiving generosity can
be challenging for many of us yet giving
and feeding or two sides of the same
hand once in Kenya I saw firsthand how
maybe my axe of general
prosody the mentorship the time put in
at 6:00 a.m. for our skypes was flowing
all the way out into Kenya
Anthony’s powerful yoga teaching was
transforming his students and I get to
be one of them while I was there we went
on to build a school that serves over
200 Masai children each year I attended
and I taught yoga classes and I saw the
real impact that yoga was having on
communities
I made friendships I met Anthony but
there was more than that that trip broke
my heart wide open there were
heartbreaking moments witnessing the
hunger the poverty and in what many
circumstances seemed like hopelessness
and there were also moments laser joy
love and connection that I had never
experienced before and yet it felt like
a homecoming I realized that when we
come together with generosity that’s
bigger that serves a higher intention we
effortlessly drop our masks drop our
armor and we deeply connect with one
another in that we see that we are more
alike than different we are connected so
we can express generosity in many ways
generosity that lasts keeps giving no
strings attached I believe it’s
important that we ask ourselves what
gets in the way of our giving and are
receiving what stops us stories like I’m
not deserving I’m not good enough I
don’t have the time I’m too busy what I
have to offer I’m too scared I don’t
have enough money it can be really
simple we can give someone our full
attention so when I was growing up my
grandmother was so generous I used to
call her
few times a week and I would very
ungracefully sing you light up my life
she would listen to me for hours and of
all the gifts that she gave me growing
up that was the best one that last in my
heart to this day giving someone our
full attention is big no more than ever
so be brave in the way that you extend
generosity say yes to giving and
receiving that’s out of your comfort
zone be big remember it’s not about you
it’s bigger be generous in the way that
you share yourself authentically with
others and you will see that we’re more
alike than different be unconditional in
your giving and above all allow yourself
to receive from your giving and from
others thank you
[Applause]
[Music]
just days after Christmas home with my
family and ambulance takes me to the
hospital I ended up being fine or was I
I asked myself from the outside looking
in everything seemed good I was the
mother of two amazing boys had a
terrific successful husband a big house
I threw great dinner parties volunteered
at school practiced yoga meditation and
being generous was a high priority in my
heart simply put I wore my mask well my
version of generosity was coming at a
price giving meant getting and yes it
and truly meanness are you familiar with
that kind the conditional kind the one
you say it and you instantly feel it in
your stomach you feel a sense of dread
but you just smile and continue my
version of generosity had the currency
of righteousness resentment and
victimhood and in many ways it felt more
like a competition of who was gonna do
more for each other there was a sense of
emptiness and exhaustion that panic
attack woke me up my way of being and
giving wasn’t sustainable and it wasn’t
until my forties that I discovered that
generosity isn’t just about giving it’s
also about receiving and when we are
courageous with our generosity we feel
alive and connected Anthony taught me
about generosity that’s bigger I mean
the kind of generosity that generates
deep connection and ask you to be bigger
than you even know yourself to be
he lives in Nairobi Kenya and I said yes
to a program that links brand-new yoga
teachers from Kenya with mentor
from around the world I experienced just
differently this time I was out of my
comfort zone I felt excited scared and I
began asking new questions like Who am I
to be mentoring a yoga teacher in Kenya
what do I have to offer were so
different I came up with a mantra during
that time whenever fear paralyzed me or
I doubt myself it’s not about me
it’s bigger saying it was my way of
getting myself out of the way and
serving a higher intention each month
Anthony and I connected for one hour on
skype my job as his mentor was to
develop and deepen his journey as a yoga
teacher
he was 19 at the time he had just come
off the streets from stealing and
dealing drugs he had lost his father to
alcoholism and his mother to AIDS I
remember our first call we just spent
most of our time trying to understand
one another his English was rough and my
Swahili was non-existent and vulnerably
we instantly connected we knew from that
first call that our relationship was
about serving something bigger than each
of us it was a bringing unity and peace
and freedom to our communities through
yoga Anthony showed up on each call
hungry to receive my mentoring and I
gave him everything that I could for my
heart his receptivity lit up my
generosity and I often left the calls
thinking whose mentoring who here I
realized that when we allow ourselves to
receive from our giving the supply that
we have to give is limitless we feel
alive and we discover a deeper sense
into our true nature as human beings
Anthony was unstoppable his courage and
his commitment to not letting fear stop
him anywhere in his life transformed me
his courage gave me courage his
commitment to giving to his communities
through yoga encouraged me to do the
same generosity is so powerful it has a
way of rippling out and inspiring more
generosity so later that year I said yes
to going to Kenya for my first service
trip my friends and family questioned my
decision why in the world would I go to
Kenya they thought it was dangerous
I had two kids I leave them with my
husband for two weeks they were just 5
in 8 I questioned my decision and still
the mantra it’s not about me it is
bigger my yes continued until my husband
and my boys were driving me to the
airport and my husband received a call
that his father had just lost his battle
to cancer immediately we turned around
the car went home and I said I’m
canceling the trip after 24 hours of
Tears pain and lots of conversation with
him and his family whose only words were
you have to go or we’ve got this I
received and I went to Kenya I’ll say
that it stretched me well beyond my
comfort zone to receive their generosity
but I did it and as they stepped on that
plane I knew that my husband wouldn’t
have it any differently
it was incredibly generous for him to
support me so receiving generosity can
be challenging for many of us yet giving
and feeding or two sides of the same
hand once in Kenya I saw firsthand how
maybe my axe of general
prosody the mentorship the time put in
at 6:00 a.m. for our skypes was flowing
all the way out into Kenya
Anthony’s powerful yoga teaching was
transforming his students and I get to
be one of them while I was there we went
on to build a school that serves over
200 Masai children each year I attended
and I taught yoga classes and I saw the
real impact that yoga was having on
communities
I made friendships I met Anthony but
there was more than that that trip broke
my heart wide open there were
heartbreaking moments witnessing the
hunger the poverty and in what many
circumstances seemed like hopelessness
and there were also moments laser joy
love and connection that I had never
experienced before and yet it felt like
a homecoming I realized that when we
come together with generosity that’s
bigger that serves a higher intention we
effortlessly drop our masks drop our
armor and we deeply connect with one
another in that we see that we are more
alike than different we are connected so
we can express generosity in many ways
generosity that lasts keeps giving no
strings attached I believe it’s
important that we ask ourselves what
gets in the way of our giving and are
receiving what stops us stories like I’m
not deserving I’m not good enough I
don’t have the time I’m too busy what I
have to offer I’m too scared I don’t
have enough money it can be really
simple we can give someone our full
attention so when I was growing up my
grandmother was so generous I used to
call her
few times a week and I would very
ungracefully sing you light up my life
she would listen to me for hours and of
all the gifts that she gave me growing
up that was the best one that last in my
heart to this day giving someone our
full attention is big no more than ever
so be brave in the way that you extend
generosity say yes to giving and
receiving that’s out of your comfort
zone be big remember it’s not about you
it’s bigger be generous in the way that
you share yourself authentically with
others and you will see that we’re more
alike than different be unconditional in
your giving and above all allow yourself
to receive from your giving and from
others thank you
[Applause]
[Music]
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