Generosity and Welfare

Got the sweetest birthday gift today from our old Ukranian coach that volunteers at SFSU…he was so upset yesterday that he hadn’t known it was my birthday and promised to bring me a gift the next day, despite my objections. A pink, wrapped box of Ukranian hazelnut cognac chocolates, and a birthday card which reads: “Like a great wine, we get better as we get older! Inside: Or rather, as we get older, we feel better with lots of great wine!” And a few servings of his delicious homemade tea, with wild mini strawberries, lemon, strong black Georgian tea, and a touch of cognac. What a perfect and thoughtful gift. I think he receives something like $300/month and wants to earn a bit more, in your seventies with a language barrier in a tech town this is no small challenge. Such a generous heart, it does make you believe in welfare, seriously. What kind of creativity and opportunities can there be for someone in that position? Someone who has lost his wife, has had surgeries, etc., and volunteers his time to keep coaching (and had a runner-up national champion high jumper this winter for State).