Charity Begins At Home

My mother always said, “Charity begins at home.” But what exactly is this supposed to mean?

The first thing we might do is attempt to identify what a ‘home’ is and what it means to us. You could own a mansion, live in a studio apartment, or reside in a mobile home. No matter where we live, home is typically where we make ourselves comfortable, cook our meals, watch TV, care for our children, and rest after a long day at work. It is that safe, comfy place that we create for ourselves, based on our values and beliefs about who we are and what we hope to accomplish.

However, there is a different kind of home that each of us dwells in, that is also based on our sense of self, what belief systems we hold, and what we think we can accomplish for ourselves. This is our ‘inner home.’

In our ‘outer home’ we may have a big screen TV, state of the appliances and designer furniture. We are often so amazingly proud of ourselves, that we were able to accumulate all these luxury items that the world outside has convinced us we must have.

But then one day, we come home from work and discover someone has broken in and stolen all our expensive accumulations. What a disaster! Fortunately, these material things can easily be replaced.

Self-approval and self-acceptance in the now are the main keys to positive changes in every area of our lives ~ Louise Hay

Similarly, the home that dwells within us is where we store all of our emotions and collect our innermost thoughts. But how is it that no one ever robs our thoughts and feelings? We are never threatened that some burglar will come in the night and sneak off with our private thoughts.

The logic to that of course is that an individual would have no way of knowing what our secret thoughts are, and could not possibly comprehend what we are feeling at any given time, unless we specifically tell them. Our thoughts and feelings are ours alone, of which we have complete possession, and they can only be changed or altered by a decision on our own behalf.

Why is this of great value to us? If we find ourselves in a situation where we are judging others, maybe by race, sexuality or creed, we might want to examine why we would have any aversion to a person that appears to be different of ourselves. What is it in particular about that soul that we cannot accept?

Love yourself first and everything else falls into line. Your really have to love yourself to get anything done in this world ~ Lucille Ball

Most often it is because it reflects something inside of us that we have not yet accepted, or come to terms with. If we cannot accept a flaw or discrepancy in another human being, it is usually because we cannot identify or accept what we perceive  as a flaw in ourselves.

If we ever want to get to a place where we can embrace diversity, we must first practice the use of ‘charity beginning at home’ by starting with ourselves. The minute we begin to accept ourselves, the easier it becomes to accept all others.