Thanksgiving, Black Friday, and Cyber Monday are all behind us. But for non-profits, today is one of the most important days of the holiday season – Giving Tuesday. After feasting on turkey and scoring great deals on holiday presents, today is a day to remember it is also important to give back and support charitable endeavors too. Today, I am humbly asking that you make the most valuable purchase you can – a blank canvas.
What do I mean by this? Why am I asking you to purchase a blank canvas on Giving Tuesday?
can·vas
ˈkanvəs/
noun
1. a strong, coarse unbleached cloth made from hemp, flax, cotton, or a similar yarn, used to make items such as sails and tents and as a surface for oil painting.
When we think about the word canvas, oftentimes we think of the cloth, or the frame on which artists will paint a picture. While this is the literal meaning of the word, canvas also serves as an important metaphor. You’ve heard the phrase “blank canvas” or “blank slate” before. Always referring to the act of starting over or getting a fresh start. And when you think about it, as much as artwork is beautiful, it is never more beautiful than before the first stroke is painted or drawn. A blank canvas has yet to be explored or formed. It can be anything the artist wishes it to be. The possibilities are endless.
Just like an artist, our students also start with a blank canvas. When they first step foot in our schools they quite literally are coming from nothing. While on the streets they were stuck in a life of insecurity and instability. Doing anything it took to get their next meal or a roof over their heads. But our students are strong like a canvas, and much like a canvas can be used in a sailboat, their minds can help them reach new destinations in life.
When they walk through our doors, they are a blank canvas – getting a fresh start at a new life. They are given the tools and the opportunity to fill that canvas with whatever their heart desires. Do I want to be a Chef? A Seamstress? A Jewelry Maker? The choice is theirs, and it’s beautiful. To have the choice to commit yourself to a better life, to learning a trade that will make you self-sufficient. It’s beautiful. And upon making that choice they spend the next few years painting their canvas with knowledge until they are ready to go back out in the world with their wonderful masterpiece.
When you support Hope for Hearts, you are providing a blank canvas to a child in need of a fresh start. You are giving them an opportunity to recreate and redefine their future until it is the beautiful work of art it was meant to be. Purchase your most valuable peace of art, a blank canvas, by supporting Hope for Hearts this Giving Tuesday.
With Gratitude,
Cristen
