Page:The Pathway of Roses, Larson (1913) image of page 70.jpg

70 True giving and true being are one and the same in real life.

The act of giving produces just as much joy as the act of receiving, because both add to the richness of existence. When we give much we bring forth much from the depths of divine being, and what we bring forth becomes a permanent part of actual life. When we give much we add to life from the within; when we receive much we add to life from the without; and when the richness of the within is harmoniously blended with the richness of the without, then real living begins. But the two must be equal. When we give more than we receive, or receive more than we give, discord follows, and herein we find the cause of many troubles and ills. The lesser without cannot receive the greater within, nor can the greater without be appropriated and appreciated by the lesser within. The small, undeveloped mind cannot enjoy the sublime grandeur of nature, nor can the great, highly developed mind find contentment in crude, uncultivated surroundings. The without and the within must be in harmony if the highest happiness and the truest life is to be enjoyed, and this harmony is invariably secured when giving and receiving are equal. In truth, there is no other way; if we would have the real correspond with the ideal, and the capacity to enjoy be as large as the good things we have found to enjoy, we must give as much as we receive and receive as much as we give.