#14. “I’d rather be taken advantage of once in awhile than have a closed heart.”
Random thoughts…
~When you give to another and they deceive you, it can hurt beyond words. The only thing worse is the nothingness you feel when you don’t give at all.
~I honestly believe that to truly give, it has to leave you without something, at least for awhile. Something may be returned to you or it may not. It shouldn’t matter, if you gave for the right reasons.
~I was never a risk taker in my younger years. No way. I used my shyness as a wall. It protected me from disappointment, failure and rejection. Unfortunately, it also isolated me from life. It prevented me from finding out what COULD happen and what I could MAKE happen. I eventually chipped away at the wall, taking the last of it out with some good swift kicks, finally breaking free ! On the other side of the wall, I was vulnerable. You have to be vulnerable in order to grow.
~Opening your heart is really a personal choice. All I can say is that the odd times I have been taken advantage of are small price to pay for the friendship, gratitude and personal reward I have received from reaching out.
~If I based my willingness to be open and generous on some of my past experiences, I could easily decide to hold everything I have and everything I am very close to my heart. That would be a burden. I would rather liberate myself from bitterness, suspicion and doubt. It feels good to lighten the load
…and simply give.
mishunderstood 
Always a fantastic read, this was a wonderful post!
Thanks so much. 🙂
Beautiful. I love this post!
Thank you, Jennifer. 🙂 I’m glad you liked it.
I also wanted to include the link at the end to encourage others to reach out to a blogger friend of mine. Thanks for the follow as well! 🙂
Reblogged this on Writings of a Mrs and commented:
I love this idea of 50 things I’ve learned in 50 years. I especially love today’s post. Please give it a read. You won’t be disappointed.
Nicely written. I enjoyed reading this.
Thank you! 🙂
Your welcome. Thank you for following me. I hope you enjoy the bumpy ride. I will revisit your blog very soon.
Outstanding post!
I appreciate the comment. Thanks for the visit. 🙂
Totally agree with this. A closed heart means that you are not open to the nice, positive, friendly things in life, which is incredibly sad. The most generous thing that anyone can do in this live is give without expecting to receive x
Yes! Thanks for your comments. 🙂
God Bless you Mish. I sent you an email. hugs
Very beautiful words of wisdom. Thank you for sharing.
Thank you and thanks for stopping by. 🙂
Reblogged this on Etcetera and commented:
Excellent insight.
I just stumbled upon your list of 50 things in 50 years, and I am on board! I will continue reading your wonderful words. I may borrow this idea, but I will need to mull over what my wisdom would be. I’m not sure I can come up with 50 things (and in my case, I now need 51 things…!) Thank you for sharing your thoughts so beautifully.
Thank YOU for your interest in my blog. 🙂
I agree. It is worth the risk 🙂
I’ve nominated you for the Very Inspiring Blogger Award. Here’s the link if you’d like to accept. http://africolonialstories.wordpress.com/2013/06/28/very-inspiring-blogger-award/
Thanks so much. Wow! My second one! I am sorry if I do not get around to officially accepting, but I am very appreciative that you would choose me for this award. It means a lot that you would consider my writing to be inspiring. 🙂
Musings that I can relate to….it takes some people longer than others to open themselves and make themselves vulnerable, but is so worth the risk. Thank you.
This really resonates for me as well. Thank you. And thanks for coming by.
I’m glad you liked it. I am enjoying your poetry. 🙂
Thank you.
Beautiful post – thank you for sharing!
Thank you! 🙂
@You have to be vulnerable in order to grow…>> Yes, yes!, yep I so agree with every single thing you penned..How right you were that I’d enjoy your posts on 50ish stuff..So much we have in common in our ways of thinking from reading your thoughts..I look forward to reading much more. 2 thumbs UP
So happy that you can relate to my ramblings. 🙂
“I honestly believe that to truly give, it has to leave you without something, at least for awhile. Something may be returned to you or it may not. It shouldn’t matter, if you gave for the right reasons.” This is just how I see it! thank you for following my wonderings.
My pleasure.:) I love your recent posts as they bring awareness to homelessness and the need for more generosity in this world.