Ep. 26 Gratitude and Giving: The Heart of Thanksgiving

Foreign.

[CFM COACH ASSISTANT AI ]: Welcome to the Money Style youe Problem podcast where every week we talk about how you can become good with money in your pocket and in your mind by using practical life coaching tools and simple and efficient ways to do money math. Are you ready to invest in yourself? Let's dive into this episode. Foreign. Hey there. Welcome to this episode of the money's not your Problem podcast where we help you become good with money in your pocket and in your mind. I'm your host Madeline and today we have a bonus episode. I I usually do a bi weekly episode as you guys know, but today is a special day. It's Thanksgiving Day. I decided to steal the idea of a very special episode that Dave Ramsey does every year in his show. It's a giving show, usually is the last day that they're live before Christmas break. And he asked the callers to call in and share a giving story where they were either the receiver of the gift or or if they were the ones that gave and blessed someone else's lives. I love that show. It's my absolutely favorite. It lasts about three hours while the entire time of the show and I just can't get enough. I love it. The source are so inspiring and so amazing. It really shows how much good is there in the world. So because I had this idea kind of last minute, I don't have callers call in but I did invite some people to share with me their given story. So you're going to hear their story in their own words and along with some of my stories too. And then by this time next year I'm going to invite even more people to do it. Even I'll have the callers call in and give me their stories. So here we go.

Okay. It was when I was Working Nights 2012, the area that I work in Long Beach. I encounter a young homeless man every night. He would never take any money but I had to do something for him. And it happened to be on Thanksgiving of 2012. Two big large suitcases full of clothes I was gonna throw away I gave to him. And what I thought was trash or not useful to me was like gold to him. And it just showed to me that one one person's trash, not trash, but what they think is not valuable is another person's gold.

[CFM COACH ASSISTANT AI ]: This story was shared by my friend Mike, Mike Reed. He is my husband's cousin and he is just part of the family. He's been there from the beginning when I started dating Rob and he a very good uncle to my girls. We love it. Mike was There, always helping us out whatever we needed. He was with us for the fun parts and for not so fun parts. He's been there with us in everything. One of the things I'm really grateful is Mike was always helping us out with rights. You know how it is. We have people coming in the airport. We needed to go somewhere and Rob was tied up at work. And Mike was always helping us out that way. He has picked up more people in the airport and dropped off so many people at the airport. He picked up my parents when they came for my wedding. He took my mom back to the airport after I had had my first baby, and she came and stayed with me. So she didn't want me driving with the baby in the car. So Mike came and took her to the airport. Well, he also lives close to la, so it's much easier to go to the LAX airport. He's picked up us a couple times when we flew out and we came back from Brazil and he was there to help us out. Even on my wedding day, he was the one that drove me to the venue of the wedding. He also took me to a surgery and it was very tough. And it was early in the morning and he came from Orange county to pick me up in Riverside. It was super early in the morning. We had to be early in LA to do that surgery. And he was there for me, helping me out because Rob was working. So I'm really grateful for Mike in my life. Sure, the rides are always helpful, but the best part is we ride in style. But he has always the right soundtrack in his car. We're always listening to 80s hair bands and we love it. So thank you, Uncle Mike, for all you've done for us.

The story where I provided service to someone just happened actually a couple days ago. There was a new sister in our ward that was very young. She's actually the same age as my oldest daughter, and she was pregnant and very shy and didn't really talk to very many people in the ward. And I spoke with her a couple weeks ago and asked her if anyone had thrown her a baby shower. And she said no. And I was actually pretty shocked because she was serving in Young Women's at the time. And I just felt like she needed some love from the people in our ward. So I hopped to it and put everything together. I only had this week off, and so I had to kind of hurry and get everything done. But me and a couple other sisters put together a really nice baby shower for her and we kind of went all out and Invited a lot of sisters from the ward and we had a nice showing. And she was so grateful and so thankful and I was glad that we went the extra mile to do something nice for some. Someone who we didn't know, but definitely needed that kind of service at that time in her life. And she was very grateful. One of my favorite stories is from back when my son Josh was little and he was getting ready to start kindergarten. He was very excited about school and was talking about possibly bringing a lunch to school. And our car had broken down a couple days later before that and we weren't able to get out to the store to get him a lunch. So my husband and I talked to him about how exciting it is to buy lunch at school and how a bunch of the kids do it and he will be just fine. So the day of his first day of school, my brother in law came and picked us up to give us a ride to drop him off for his first day. And I walked him into class and the teacher asked all of them, who brought a lunch today? And a bunch of kids raised their hand and then they said, and who's going to be buying lunch today? And the only person that raised their hand was Josh. Well, his tears welled up and he looked and turned around at me and of course I was crying because it was my first kid going to kindergarten. So I told him I would be right back and I ran out to the car and I told Eric what had happened. And just like a good brother in law, he told me to hop in the truck and we drove straight over to the store. Eric bought the most expensive, coolest lunchbox he could find and filled it with a lunch that any kid would die for. And we brought it back to the school. It may have seemed like a simple gesture for some people, but to me that meant the world to me, that he would come and rescue me in my time of need. When my poor little boy was sad on his first day of school. And he made me happy and comforted me in a way that he had never done before. So that story will always be very special to me.

[CFM COACH ASSISTANT AI ]: This was Jennifer, Jennifer Garcia. She's a dear friend and we love her family with so many qualities and so many things I've learned from Jennifer. I think what touched me the most, of course, is one of those times where she went above and beyond. So for my wedding, we had her cater our food and she had a menu for us to try out. And everything was good planned with her. We had a little issue with the venue and they told us that we needed to come back the next day after the wedding to come and help clean the venue. So I wasn't very thrilled about that. As you can imagine, the day after I get married, I have to come back to the venue. However, when we got to the venue, Jen had took care of everything with her crew. It wasn't part of her responsibility, but she did it. She did from the goodness of her heart. And she didn't even know me that well. She knew my husband, but she didn't know me that way. But she was so kind and that I carry in my heart for all this time.

22 years later receiving gift is as enjoyable as giving. And I have been learning to balance this energy. And when I gave many gifts in all of my life and always I appreciate everything. But when we didn't expect, I guess is much better. And I had one surprise when one week before my marriage I stopped and drive through the Starbucks and when I will pay someone pay for me in front my car and I didn't know if it was woman or man. And well, this person changed my day and I was so happy. And I talked for my friends, hey, when I will pay. I feel so happy because it's not because the money, it's because I didn't expect. And in my heart I feel I have to make this for someone too. And I did too. So for me receive and give gifts, it's the same energy. It's a balance. And I feel the same happy, same joy, same gratitude. I think just we have to balance it because in the past I like more give than receive but it's not good. I learned the we have to balance the energy and when we didn't expect is much better. And we have to fill in our heart like enjoy like love. It's the. The secret for me forgive and receive is the love. Love is a very feeling in my mind. I hope to and I. I wish everyone have these precious, you know, love. Love is the best feeling in my mind, in my heart.

[CFM COACH ASSISTANT AI ]: I decided to continue with the theme of food. This was my friend Adriana Jarva. Adriana likes yoga and she has a very healthy lifestyle and her cooking is amazing. And she doesn't just cook, she prays over the food as she's cooking. It's almost like a ritual, that spiritual ritual that she has between her and God preparing those meals. And we are on the receiving ending of her gift. We had Covid and she brought food for us. We had issues where one of my girls was sick or Feeling down. And she would prepare something delicious, and she would come and bring it to us, and she would talk about it, and she would spend that time thinking of one of us and preparing that food especially for us. She also took the time and patience to teach my youngest girl, Iris. And they were always cooking something together, even if it wasn't something healthy that Adriana would eat it, but she would make. So Iris would have that experience with her, usually a bishop dupe or a brigadero or something like that. But we just love her food, and we love her heart and being able to share that gift with us.

Okay, so it was rainy season in Sao Paulo, Brazil. That's where I was living. And I used to work at an airline in Brazil, and I used to live four blocks only from my job, from the airport. So I was wearing my uniform, high heels, and the. The fancy uniform that we have to wear to work at the airport. And I was walking. And seriously, in Sao Paulo, those rains, they come, like, out of nothing. And then. So I was on my second block and then started to rain. So I just stopped under, like, a small roof from a house. So it was this tiny roof from the house, so. So it wouldn't be too wet. And then I was just waiting for the rain to go to pass because it was like a summer rain, so usually takes, like, 10, 15, 20 minutes. They don't take too long. So I was just waiting, and I was like, oh, man, I'm gonna be late for work. So I was looking at the clock. I was like, I should have brought my umbrella, but I forgot. It was really sunny. I was like, look at the sky. It was kind of blue. Of course, there was some clouds, but I was like, I just left with my. Without my umbrella. So this man, he. He was walking on the street with the umbrella. He gave me his umbrella. He's like, okay, okay, you go to work, and I'll stay and I'll wait for the. The rain to stop. But was like, I work at the airport. It's just two blocks, and why don't you walk with me? And then he's like, no, no, no, no. Because two people on a small umbrella. Not a very good idea. So you go, and then you start your shift, and then I'll. I'll just wait for the rain, because I don't. I'm done for the. With my job. I'm just going. I'm just going home. I was like, okay, so if you're going home and it's just two blocks away, why don't you go back and get your umbrella. And he actually did. He actually stopped by to get his umbrella. Everything's very expensive in Brazil. So I told him that. I was like, this is where I work, this is where I'm going to be. And then he stopped by and I gave his umbrella. This is my story.

[CFM COACH ASSISTANT AI ]: This was my friend Shayla. Shayla Queiroz is an amazing, crazy person. There's never a dull moment by her. Life is just even better with her craziness. One of the things I love the most about her is when she leaves me a audio message and she starts by singing a song from the Galia Pinta Giga video. Bondia Usoja, Nasilana Fazinginha. I love it. Every time she has to start with the song because it's just too funny. And we're always laughing, even with difficult things. She has that gift of laughter and seeing things that could be even dramatic, but she always sees as a fun thing. So we just laugh with her. It's just too much fun. Another thing that I'm grateful for her is that every time I have a question about one of my dog Inos, she's always there to answer for me and. But I think the greatest thing was that when my little dog Inho Blueberry passed away, she asked permission to her brother in law to share something that he wrote because she knew it was gonna help me. And I was so touched by that because it was something very personal to their family. But she was willing to ask him to share with me. And I love her for. This was my friend, Matthew Di Wozniak. She is a powerhouse of woman. She was before she was married and then she stayed even stronger after getting married. She has four boys and a husband, so she has to be tough. And she is a trailblazer. She's always opening. She's especially opening new paths and new opportunities for the Brazilian community here in Utah. But my given story from her, it has nothing to do with the Brazilian festival or anything like that. In one of the projects that she is involved, it's for who she is as a mother and all the opportunities that she has to teach me. Even when she goes through very difficult times, she has no drama approach. A couple times I feel very open to her. So she knew I was very upset a couple times and without any drama or making any big deal out of it, she helped me keep my cool and she helped me to calm down and make better decisions than if I was just upset and just reacting. I remember this one time I Was having such a hard time after I had my second baby because my oldest daughter was not very happy at all. She was having. She was having a very difficult time adjusting to the new situation. She did not want to get close to me or the baby, and she was probably feeling very hurt. So I remember I called Mathilde and I told her what was going on, and I was crying and upset, and she matter of factly told me, but you knew this was gonna happen, right? We talked about this. She wasn't happy from the beginning. Why did you think this was gonna change now? And she was right. She was totally right. We knew that that was the situation from the beginning. So there was not to be a surprise there. We just had to find a better way to communicate with her and to give her the attention that she still needed. I'm forever grateful to Mathilde for her wisdom and the good times. I cannot stress enough how much fun we have together. We go on trips, and there's not a single moment of silence.

So when I was working, one of my partners had given each of us gift cards for McDonald's. And at the time, I wasn't eating McDonald's, and I really don't eat a lot of McDonald's anyway. But I kept it in my car, figuring out if I needed it in an emergency or a pinch, I had it. And I don't remember if it was that night or if it was, you know, sometime after that. But I was out, and I was working graveyards at the time. And I came across a guy who looked like he was carrying everything he owned with him. And he was. He wasn't necessarily hitchhiking, but he was walking, and it was out on a desert road. I thought, well, let me. Let me stop and see where he's headed. And he was headed to, like, Texas or something like that. It was far. And so I'm like, well, I can give you a ride as far as I can, just, you know, to the end of where I. I work. So I put him in the back seat and put his stuff in my trunk, and I drove him out that way. And once I got to the end of it, I was like, here, you know what, dude? Take this card. I'm like. Because he didn't have two pennies to rub together, and I figured he could use it more. More than I could. So that was something that was given to me that I gave to somebody else who could use it.

[CFM COACH ASSISTANT AI ]: This one was from my husband. He worked at the sheriff's department in California for many, many years. Until he retired. I have so many things that I'm grateful for him in my life for the things that he does, but especially because he allows me to stretch my wings and fly. What does that mean? Well, when I think of a project, he's supporting me, he also tells me what are the things that he's doing, seen that I'm not seeing so great that we're complimentary in those parts of our personality. And he helps me see the possible problems. I'm really grateful for that. I'm very grateful that he doesn't complain that I want to try something new in my business. He doesn't complain that I want to go on a conference to learn and that I want to go sometimes out of state to be able to go learn and to have that time for myself. And he, he never complains about the time when I go and visit my family and he has to stay here sometimes he's holding on the fort and I'm going. But I'm really grateful for his support and his kindness to me and his love for me.

So I recently remember just yesterday my dad, he asked me where a vending machine was because we're about to watch an important competition for, for my, my sister in law and I showed it to him and then I recently got paid, but I had to pay a lot of stuff. And so he, without even asking me, he just went there and he bought me a calzone which was very nice.

[CFM COACH ASSISTANT AI ]: Did you notice? The best part of having your own podcast is that I can spend all this time being grateful to the people that I want and I can say it and recognizing them for all the things that they've done for, for me. Matuta's family, the entire family is amazing. But I want to bring it up about one person. Well, the story they just heard is from Braxton. Braxton is Matilda's youngest son. And every time I would come from California to visit Utah, I would stay at Mathilde's house. And he was always the one giving up his room so I could have a place to stay. Yesterday I went with my soon to be mother in law to her boss's house to gather the leaves that had fallen from the trees because of fall. After many hours of work, we finally finished and the garden is looking better than ever. We did this that from the goodness of our heart and it felt so good to give him that gift. Now Braxton is getting married with my niece Louisi Luija. That was who shared her given story just now. I love being an aunt and Louisi has the gift to me, the gift of music. She has a beautiful voice. She sings in choirs. She goes and presents at the tabernacle at the Delta center. And she is willing to sing with me in the car whenever. And she doesn't complain about my singing.

When I was about 10 years old, it was Easter Sunday. My mom was primary, was primary president at the time. And along the week we had done some Easter Easter gifts. Kind of a bunny shaped basket with some candy inside. And every kid was supposed to get one on Sunday and we made a bunch of them. But when Sunday came and they distributed it, one kid didn't receive it. I, I don't remember if he was visiting or something like that, but he didn't get one. And I think it was my mom who came to me and said, you know that boy, he. There were, there weren't enough baskets for him to get one. Would you give him yours? And I didn't think twice, I just said yes, of course I hadn't opened it yet. So he got his Easter basket full of candy and I felt so good about it. I didn't even miss the candy itself. I just felt how good it was to share and to see how his face lit up when he got it. And it was. I think it's my earliest memory of really giving something to someone.

[CFM COACH ASSISTANT AI ]: This next story was from my oldest niece, Natalie. Natalie is amazing. She's smart, funny, and she has the kindest heart. One of the greatest gifts Natalie gave to me was the gift of thinking about becoming a mother. When my sister was pregnant of Natalie, well, before that, I was very child averse. I always loved kids. But somehow in my teenage years my angst took over and I would say that I would never would have kids and that I would like kids with potatoes. I know, whore. But then my sister got pregnant and from the moment that we found out that my sister was pregnant, I fell in love already and we found out it was a girl. We already had a name and we are just in awe. And Natalie was the ray of sunshine that came into my life. And because of her I softened my heart again to be able to want to have kids again. One of the hardest things I ever did was to moved from Brazil here when Natalie was just a year old. And that was so hard. She even walked to me first. So it was a difficult time. But I have a great relationship with Natalie now and she already came and visited us a few times here and we have the greatest time. So I'm really grateful for her. Another thing that I'M really grateful to Natalie is because she keeps her eye on my sister. I love my sister and that is so good to know that Natalie is there to help her out.

Live as compass.

[CFM COACH ASSISTANT AI ]: The story you just heard was from my sister Regina Maris, and she was always an example to me. I think the greatest gifts that she ever showed me and she ever gave it to me was her love, her unconditional love. It didn't matter what I looked like or if I was an angst teenager, a moody teenager. She even paid me allowance for some time until I became so grumpy that she was like, no, I'm not taking this anymore. But she was always willing to teach me and help me and have the patience to take me places. Even though I wasn't dressed appropriately for a fireside. I had my ripped jeans and my hair was red and different colors and she was fine. She would take me anyway. Not only she had to deal with me, but she would encourage me to do different things and she would help me to do those things. I once tried to become a Brazilian MTV vj. Back in the day, you would go and present video clips and they needed VJs. So I sent a bunch of pictures. She took all those pictures for me. She did my makeup, she did my hair. She helped me choose the outfit. That was lots of fun. And she's since always, she's always been helping me, encouraging me to do things. And she's kind of. She is one of my biggest supporters and she's always happy for the different things or accomplishments that I get in my life. I'm so grateful for her. And of course, one of the greatest gifts she ever gave me was having her kids. I love being an aunt and she's willing to share them with me and I love it.

Okay, so a really good given story I have is actually from you, from when I was like 16. Around 16, that you gave me a trip to the US that we stayed at California and we went to Disney World Nuts Berry Farm. That was like the best days of my life, that trip to California. I remember about it like every other day. It changed everything. Like, I had an amazing time. So that's my given story.

[CFM COACH ASSISTANT AI ]: This is my nephew, Christian. I love Christian to pieces. We have such a great time. And the biggest gift that Christian ever gave to me was his friendship to my daughter Annika. Annika was never very social, but she and Christian hit it off and everywhere we'd go, Christian would come with us. When we were in Brazil or if they were over here, they Always have the greatest time. And I'm so grateful for him and for his patience because my girls fight a lot, but he was always patient, there was never a problem. Everything was good and Annika and him just had the greatest time. They're the bestest friends and I'm so grateful for that. Last year me and my friend celebrated a delayed Christmas together on the beach and my friend happened to get me a rare Post Malone cup from raising canes, which I had been looking at for a while but hadn't really wanted to buy for myself since I figured it was too much money. So it was really cool to get that as a gift. This past experience, this past giving story from my daughter Annika. Early on she always supported me when I had a big migraine or I wasn't feeling well and I had that a lot. Annika was willing to stay with Iris and just make sure that they would be okay until dad would come home later on when they were older, Annika was still willing to stay with her sister even if they had to fight a little bit. So I could go on a trip and go to a conference or go to a training. Even right now, sometimes when we go out to Rob and I just for overnight, Annika's willing to handle the three dogs, handle the cousin, handle the sister and keep everything going together even if she stress a little bit. I think the greatest things that they ever give me, my daughters is those opportunities for growth. It will probably take much longer to learn the lessons that I've been learning being a mother. And that's something that I owe to them because they are the ones helping me in this growth. I know listen to all these stories, make my heart feel really full. Grateful for the other people's experience and for all they did to me. But you know that the greatest given story is the one from our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ's sacrifice is an unparalleled act of love and selflessness. This act is not merely a story of sacrifice, but a profound testament to the depth of God's love for his children. Jesus Christ's atonement, encompassing his suffering in Gethsemane, his crucifixion and his resurrection represents the ultimate gift given to mankind. It is through this selfless act that individuals are offered the opportunity for redemption, forgiveness and the promise of eternal life. This divine offering is an embodiment of pure love as Christ willingly took upon himself the sins, sorrows and pains of all humanity, providing a way for each one of us to overcome physical and spiritual death. The Scriptures eloquently testify of this supreme act of giving. And John 3:16 says, For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. This verse succinctly captures the profound love of Heavenly Father and offering His Son for the salvation of humankind. Elder Wichdorf further illuminates this concept. The infinite and eternal atonement of Jesus Christ is the most singular event in all of human history. It is the pivotal point upon which all else in the Gospel hinges. These teachings collectively underscore the profound and incomparable nature of Christ and Heavenly Father's gift to humanity. So at the end this episode, I want to share with you my gratitude for you for listening to this episode and for other episodes that you have listened to. I'm also grateful for the freedom that I get to experience here in the United States of America, for my background and for my upbringing in Brazil and my culture. I am grateful for having the Gospel in my life and for being able to have the opportunity to learn and share these things with you. So if you're on your way to your Thanksgiving dinner, have a great dinner, enjoy time with family, and remember, money's not your problem. I'll see you next time. Ate Brevio Brigada thank you for listening to this week's episode. Remember to, like, subscribe and share. And if you want to learn more about the attributes that make you good with money, go to my website right now, StrasbourgCoaching.com and sign up for the free 9 video series. I'll be back next week at the Brevio Brigad.