Are you searching for the perfect gift for your loved ones?
I recommend a gift card from Kiva.org.
Three years ago, for Mother’s Day, my son gave me a $100 Kiva gift card. Kiva is a non-profit mico-lending firm with outreach all over the world.
I have $100 to lend to borrowers, and a log of dozens, if not hundreds of applicants. There are people in mechanics, teachers, students, farmers, craftpeople, vendors, educators, artists, bakers, grandmothers, single parents; people from all walks of life.
Money is about possibility. When you give a Kiva loan, you open a door to new possibilities in self-sufficiency.
You’ll find descriptions of the projects for which people are requesting loans. You can search the applications by country, by topic or by gender.
Loans are managed by Kiva. All you have to do is select a project that makes your heart sing, and push buttons on your computer. When the loans are repaid, the money goes back into your loaning account. That means you get to lend the money again. Money flows in a beautiful cycle of giving and receiving.
You can start with as little as $25.
Your way of giving may be different from mine. Here is what I do: I trust my heart to show me which loans to make. I might even do an Inner Jewel meditation, to bring my awareness deeper into my heart, before I select. My brain gets overloaded trying to decide which causes are most worthy, but my heart knows that from the perspective of Source, all are worthy and all are loved. I set my judgments aside and go with my heart.
When people repay their loans, I feel joyful. Being able to repay their loans means that they were able to open the music school, plant the crops, or buy the cloth. They were able to open a store. They can buy shoes for their kids, or send them to school, or take care of their elderly parents.
If they don’t manage to repay their loans, I trust that the loan helped them in some way.
I love the way the money keeps getting recycled, flowing like water. Kiva’s business mode is sustainable and respectful to the borrowers. Baring major disasters, it resonates with me that lending money may be more effective in helping people come out of poverty, than giving it outright.
Charity can sometimes be loaded with hidden agendas. The micro-finance model respects the dignity of people needing loans and the people lending. The true nature of money is that it is meant to circulate.
I feel happy to share this resource with you. The website is: http://www.kiva.org/lend.
Money is about possibility. When you give a Kiva loan, you are being an agent of creating new possibilities. If you are like me, that feels really good!
