凱瑟琳‧赫本親口說：

「我十幾歲的時候，有一次和父親排隊買馬戲團票。最後，我們和售票處之間只隔著一家人。那一家人給我留下了深刻的印象。

有八個孩子，都不到12歲。從他們的穿著打扮可以看出，他們錢不多，但衣服乾淨，非常乾淨。孩子們都很乖，兩人一組，手牽手站在父母身後。
他們對小丑、動物以及當晚即將看到的所有表演感到興奮。從他們的興奮中，你可以看出他們以前從未看過馬戲表演。這將是他們人生中的一大亮點。 」

父親和母親驕傲地站在他們小隊伍的最前面。母親牽著丈夫的手，看著他，彷彿在說：『你是我身披閃亮盔甲的騎士。 ’他面帶微笑，享受著家人幸福的時光。

售票員問他想要多少張票，他自豪地回答：「我要八張兒童票和兩張成人票。」然後售票員報出了價格。

妻子鬆開了丈夫的手，低下了頭，男人的嘴唇開始顫抖。他湊近丈夫，問道：“你剛才說了多少錢？”
售票員又重複了一次價格。

他錢不夠。他怎麼能轉過身去告訴他的八個孩子，他沒錢帶他們去看馬戲團？

看到這一幕，我爸把手伸進口袋，掏出一張20美元的鈔票，丟在地上。我們家可不富裕。我爸彎下腰，撿起那張20美元的鈔票，拍了拍男人的肩膀，說：“先生，不好意思，這是從你口袋裡掉出來的。”

那人明白發生了什麼事。他並非接受施捨，但在他絕望、心碎、尷尬的處境中，他感激地接受了這份幫助。他直視著我父親的眼睛，雙手握住他的手，緊緊地握住鈔票，嘴唇顫抖，淚水順著臉頰流下，他回答道：“謝謝您，先生。這對我和我的家人來說真的意義重大。”

我和父親回到車上，開車回家。父親送出的20美元是我們原本打算用來買票的。
雖然那天晚上我們沒去看馬戲團表演，但我們內心深處的喜悅遠勝於觀賞馬戲表演。

那天，我領悟了給予的真正價值。給予者比接受者更偉大。

如果你想變得偉大，超越生命本身，那就學會給予。愛與你期望得到什麼無關，只與你期望付出什麼有關──一切。
給予和祝福他人的重要性怎麼強調也不為過，因為給予總是充滿快樂。學習透過給予的行為讓別人快樂。
——凱薩琳‧赫本

Katharine Hepburn, in her own words:

"Once, when I was a teenager, my father and I were standing in line to buy tickets for the circus. Finally, there was only one family between us and the ticket counter. That family made a lasting impression on me.

There were eight children, all under the age of 12. From the way they were dressed, you could tell they didn’t have much money, but their clothes were clean, very clean. The children were well-behaved, standing in pairs behind their parents, holding hands.
They were so excited about the clowns, the animals, and all the acts they would see that night. From their excitement, you could tell they had never been to a circus before. It was going to be a highlight of their lives.

The father and mother stood proudly at the front of their little group. The mother was holding her husband’s hand, looking at him as if to say, 'You’re my knight in shining armor.' He was smiling, enjoying seeing his family happy.

The ticket lady asked how many tickets he wanted, and he proudly responded, 'I want eight children’s tickets and two adult tickets.' Then she announced the price.

The wife let go of her husband’s hand, her head dropped, and the man’s lip began to quiver. He leaned in closer and asked, 'How much did you say?'
The ticket lady repeated the price.

He didn’t have enough money. How was he supposed to turn around and tell his eight kids that he couldn’t afford to take them to the circus?

Seeing what was happening, my dad reached into his pocket, pulled out a $20 bill, and dropped it on the ground. We weren’t rich by any means. My father bent down, picked up the $20 bill, tapped the man on the shoulder, and said, 'Excuse me, sir, this fell out of your pocket.'

The man understood what was happening. He wasn’t being handed charity, but he gratefully accepted the help in his desperate, heartbreaking, and embarrassing situation. He looked straight into my father’s eyes, took my dad’s hand in both of his, squeezed the bill tightly, and with trembling lips and a tear streaming down his cheek, he replied, 'Thank you, sir. This really means so much to me and my family.'

My father and I went back to our car and drove home. The $20 my dad gave away was what we had planned to use for our own tickets.
Although we didn’t see the circus that night, we felt a joy inside us that was far greater than seeing the circus.

That day, I learned the true value of giving. The Giver is greater than the Receiver.

If you want to be great, greater than life itself, learn to give. Love has nothing to do with what you expect to get, only with what you expect to give—everything.
The importance of giving and blessing others cannot be overstated because there is always joy in giving. Learn to make someone happy through acts of giving."
- Katharine Hepburn

目前沒有已撰寫的回應，建議對其抱持健康的懷疑。