BritMums Carnival: Our Time of Gifts, my year of sharing

It’s BritMums Carnival time and this week it’s hosted by the lovely Nell Heshram who writes at The Pigeon Pair and Me, here she explains the thinking behind her theme.

For the last five months I’ve been blogging Our Time of Gifts, a year-long experiment in giving away my stuff.

Despite (or because of?) the increasingly desperate financial troubles, there seems to be a surge in people helping others, sharing what they have with those who are close to home, or even complete strangers. Thrift and frugality are buzzwords for our times, and everywhere you look there are new ways to help us share – our goods, our knowledge, our space.

I decided to spend a year trying out some new ways to give, alongside good old-fashioned co-operation. I was hoping that, as well as getting a rosy glow from all that helping of others, I’d come across some interesting tales to tell, and insights into the human condition. And I wanted to explore, through stories on my blog, the difference that regular collaboration makes to my family, our friendship circles, household finances, and happiness levels.

Five months in to Our Time of Gifts, I haven’t been disappointed. Passing things on to others has helped save the life of our neighbour; it’s given me a fresh perspective on the life of my elderly grandmother; it’s taken me into the homes of people whose stories are less happy than mine. ; and it’s led me into some marathon crafting and chutney-making sessions.

Gifts of time and skills are probably more valuable than anything of monetary worth. But, since dreaming up Our Time of Gifts, it’s been the giving away of stuff that’s interested me most. How do our possessions define us as individuals, and as a nation? Does what we choose to give away, and to whom, say more about us than the things we decide to keep for ourselves?

I’m hosting the Britmums Carnival with ‘giving and sharing’ as a theme, and bloggers have been sending me some wonderful posts to read. What struck me is how everyone is motivated into giving for different reasons. And the effect on the recipient of the gift is often more important than the intentions of the person doing the giving.

I’ve had a lot of posts pinging into my inbox but I’d love to read more. Have you shared anything with neighbours or friends? Given to charity? Or even to a complete stranger? Tweet your posts to @NellHeshram or email nellheshram@gmail.com

Nell Heshram blogs at the Pigeon Pair and Me. You can also find her here on facebook, Pinterest, Instagram and Twitter.

Before becoming a blogger, she was ambling through a career in the charity sector. Then, good fortune threw her a couple of googlies: Austin (4), and Gwen (1).  She decided to become a stay-at-home Mum, so now Nell and the Pigeons are flocked at home in London, with the Daddy D coming back to roost in the evenings and at weekends.

Her blog is an effort to remember the details of her days with Austin and Gwen; to stop them being lost in a haze of sleep deprivation and hormones.