getting high

What is it that happens to us on the inside when we lend a hand to help those in need? Why is that so many people have written to me to ask what they can do for Change the Truth; why are so many people interested in going to Uganda with me in December to assist the children at the orphanage?

Is there an endorphin that is released in us when we do this work, kind of like when we exercise, that simply makes us feel good?

I have no idea, but I do know that more and more, as this project of mine evolves, I come into contact with folks who want to help - who want to give up their free time, their money, their skills, their vacation - to extend a hand to those less fortunate than themselves.

Do we feel guilty for the excesses of our American lifestyles? Or is it, as Anne Franke said, that we are all basically good inside?

I am amazed over and over again at the spirit of generosity and enthusiasm which adults and children alike have directed toward one hundred and fifty orphaned kids in Uganda - children they do not know, children they most likely will never meet. The guy who does my framing, school-aged kids from many different cities, a writer from central Kansas, a single mom and her kids from back east, teachers, artists, lawyers, doctors, a family from Washington state, a local woman who gives great facials, they are all lining up to do what they can to provide assistance to Samarie, Billy, Apacko and the others. How could I have known?

All I had to do was mention the possibilities, and BOOM! you gravitated toward the idea and the need. This experience is probably the first time in my life that I have truly felt like part of a world community. I hope you have an inkling of that feeling, as well.

ADDENDUM:

After writing the above, I decided to do a little research on the topic of giving/feeling good, and came up with this explanation from an article in the New York Sun:

“A number of studies have researched exactly why charity leads to happiness. The surprising conclusion is that giving affects our brain chemistry. For example, people who give often report feelings of euphoria, which psychologists have referred to as the ‘Helper's High.’ They believe that charitable activity induces endorphins that produce a very mild version of the sensations people get from drugs like morphine and heroin.

Charity also lowers the stress hormones that cause unhappiness. In one 1998 experiment at Duke University, adults were asked to give massages to babies — the idea being that giving a baby pleasure is a compassionate act with no expectation of a reward, even a ‘thank you’ — in return. After they performed the massages, the seniors were found to have dramatically lower levels of the stress hormones cortisol, epinephrine, and norepinephrine in their brains.

The bottom line from all the research on giving is that it is not just good for your favorite cause; it's good for you, too. For relief from stress and depression, it's probably more cost-effective than whatever your doctor might prescribe. For getting a little high, it's not illegal, and a lot less fattening than booze.”