Hello…it has been a while since I have written anything. There has been so much going on in life, in family, in country and in the world. Maybe it’s just that it feels to be a little more than overwhelming. Maybe I’ve been uninspired to write. Maybe I’ve not been intentional with making the time to write. Maybe it’s all of the above! We all know that the past 2 years have not been easy. It has been plagued with disease, fires, floods, death, mayhem and not just natural disasters, but human disasters as well and the list goes on.

How do we process and deal with the suffering that is happening all over the world? It’s so overwhelming and I know that I sometimes feel so helpless. I ask myself, what am I supposed to do? I’m one person. There are so many homeless, there are people that have lost homes due to wildfires, there are people still sick and dying from Covid and the floods in Germany, and here, in our own United States. What are we to do?

It’s not an easy answer and as I pass by the homeless man sitting on the ground as I walk into Starbucks, I’m sad, but ask myself, what is it that I can do to make his day a little brighter and to at least let him know that he has been seen? The most immediate thing I can do is buy him something to eat and drink. There is no greater satisfaction that I get than when I give of my own resources and see the smile that comes across his face as I hand him his food and drink. It’s not the food that changes his day, it’s the fact that someone acknowledged him, spoke to him, made him feel human, and didn’t just walk by without even looking. Everyone wants to be seen and acknowledged.

The only thing I know to do that will bring a little bit of positive change, is to continue doing the smallest acts of kindness when the opportunity presents itself. No, I can’t go fight fires…but I can give to the fire fighters fund, or make some cookies and take it to my local fire station to thank them. Maybe I can take a trunk full of donated clothes and shoes to the local homeless camp and let them take their pick. Perhaps I can house a family that has been displaced because they have been evacuated or their home just burned down. There are so many ways we can help and bring a bit of sunshine to someones life and to their day.

I am not ashamed to say that I am fortunate to have everything I need to live comfortably, not extravagantly, but comfortable. So, I can’t very well sit by and watch the suffering going on around me. The way that I can suffer with them, is to talk, to acknowledge, to assist, to fund, etc. in whatever way I can to make a difference by one small act of kindness. If every one of us could do this…the world would change!

How do you make a difference? I would love to hear!