Every Monday night, the iJourney.org mailing goes out with a weekly reading, and links to the week's popular tidbits from various CharityFocus portals. It's a beautiful thing.  About ten years ago, it started with a couple of subscribers and there are still a few people who think I hit the compose-send in my Gmail every week, and write back kind notes of gratitude. :)

Like all things CharityFocus, though, there's always a back story.  And I say always because we are so process oriented that most things inevitably trace back to some labor-of-love element.  And iJourney is no exception.

In each email, along with the text of the reading, we also include an audio reading by Liz Helgesen.  In case you didn't know, Liz is a nationally reknowned voiceover artist whose voice is heard by 1 in 4 Americans everyday!   What's been downright inspiring about Liz is that she has delivered her offering every single week, as a no-strings-attached gift.   Not even once once has she even hinted at the prospect of her name being featured, or her photo being shown, or her website being linked.   Our stats show that close to 50,000 people have downloaded to her recordings, with Gentle Art of Blessing, I Will Not Die an Unlived Life, and The Theory Behind Forgiveness being the top three.   One would figure that would be satisfying but Liz has never asked about those numbers either!  Liz just offers it up selflessly, in the true spirit of a gift-economy.

And this week, Liz wowed us yet again as she included the voice of her own daughter -- Emma -- in the weekly reading of Indigenous Intelligence.  I like to confuse people with gratitude, but it's not everyday people that pull that trick back on me.  Unless you're Liz. :)

[Up for a random act of gratitude?  Email Emma.]