About a month ago, I met a woman who still has me thinking. I was at my friend’s uncle’s 60^th birthday and I was talking to one of his relatives, making small talk. Somehow, the conversation ended up on her earrings and how she got them at a craft fair from a woman who pounds her own metal. What she did next shocked me. She took out her earrings and proceeded to give them to me. She said that I should have them, since I had complimented her on them earlier on in the conversation. “It’s just something I do,” she said. “I don’t ever let myself get too attached to material things.”

This act of generosity ended up making my whole night. In a world where everyone is dying to get the new iPhone or obsessing over a certain type of tennis shoes, this woman had completely defied the trend our world has to be materialistic.

I think there is something all of us can learn from this woman. Generosity is a quality that today’s world seems to be lacking. Although this woman showed me generosity in a materialistic way, there are infinite numbers of ways to be generous and give to others.

It is my belief that every person on this earth has something to give to others, whether that is a material item (such as the earrings, in my case) or a talent. Practicing generosity in daily life is one small step towards improving one’s own happiness and the happiness of the world around him or her. Sharing an ability to sing, an empathetic heart, or any other various talents with someone else can completely turn around his or her day or affect his or her life in ways one would never think possible. Talents are something to not only share, but to be proud of. There’s no reason not to share them with others.

The willingness of this woman to give me her earrings completely struck me. This was not her first time performing an act of generosity and it was not about to be her last. It was very much something that she allowed to be a part of her life.

This act of generosity is what got me thinking, what would the world be like if everyone adopted a lifestyle similar to this woman’s? What if I could leave the same lasting impression on someone else that this woman had left on me?

The materialistic, selfish world that we live in is something that affects us daily. The fact that this woman’s act of generosity affected me so dramatically says so much. Events like this don’t happen very often anymore; a willingness to share and give to others is something that each person should strive for.

Winston Churchill once said, "We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give." Each and every one of us should go and make a life for ourselves. Generosity is a quality that is precious in today's world and one that I now strive to have and practice each day.