As it turns out, tomorrow is the last day of the third month of this year. That means that 1/4 of year will be gone after tomorrow. It's amazing to think that all of our worlds have been turned upside down for various reasons. Some of us are probably holding together very well, while others may be feeling very anxious, and others are thankful for the extra time that are able to spend with their families.
I want you to consider the words that this man once said. This is by a famous basketball coach some of us once knew of back in the 80s and 90s. He fought courageously against cancer and his words still inspire many to this day. Perhaps they might make you pause and reconsider how you live the rest of your year - "To me there are three things everyone should do every day. Number one is laugh. Number two is think -- spend some time in thought. Number three you should have your emotions move you to tears. If you laugh, think and cry, that's a heck of a day." Those words were once expressed by the late great, Jim Valvano. Ponder those words and think about how they can help us in this phase of life that we are all going through.
Over the last few days I have tried to think of ways we can help others. Our city needs it. Our county needs it. Our state needs it. Our country needs it. We all need some light in some way, but we can all give some light as well. It doesn't have to be like Drew Brees, who shelled out five million bucks to take care of his folks down in NOLA, but if we are passionate about helping others, then we MUST and WILL all find a way.
I made a small list (I call it small compared to other lists I have made, wink, wink), and I know that some of you are already doing some amazing things out there.
1.Take time to pray for those affected by this, daily.
2. Love thy neighbor and bake something for them. Just be sure to leave it on their doorstep. I am not really experienced at this one, but I do know where to find some awesome sweets in this town.
3. Write letters to folks. If you a bunch of stationery sitting around, then use it. Tell yourself you are going to send a card to one person a day for the next two weeks. You can entitle them "cards from quarantine". If you need to find addresses, you might be able to use whitepages.com. Sometimes you can locate folks on there. If you need stamps, I might be able to deliver some. I'll trade a baked good for some stamps.
4. Face Time someone you haven't seen since you were quarantined. If you don't have an Apple product then use Skype, or Facebook Messenger or Zoom.
5. Order donuts, or juice for a clinic, fire department, police department, etc. Heckfire, just drop them off some baked goods if you are uber talented. Maybe even call up a few friends, go in together and order some pizzas for folks working in the line of fire.
6. Check on those you know who are struggling through this. There are folks who can't handle the quarantine as well as others, so call them or text them daily. If you are able to get away from the house for a few minutes deliver them some food with a sweet note.
7. Help those local businesses who are doing everything they can to survive during this hard time, especially the local restaurants. You know you are not going to survive on your own cooking for that long. I have done it for 15 days and I am almost getting tired of it personally. Seriously though, support those local diners that you love so much.
8.Be very kind to everyone. As a guy on the radio said recently, we need to practice maximum grace.
9. Go silent for two hours and interact with those around you face to face. That means wi-fi off, phone face down, Bluetooth off, computer off, and TV off. If you still listen to an old AM/FM radio, then turn it off, too. The idea is to distance ourselves from our gadgets and be in the present with others. Smile, listen, read together, and just share stories.
10. Share your talents with the world. At least through social media that is. If you can sing then host a little Facebook Live session at your piano or with your guitar. If you are a great writer, then share some of your writings. If you are an artist, show everyone what kind of art you are awesome at creating. Photography nerd (that's this guy), then upload one of your favorite shots so folks can see something awesome every day that is yours. You want to do something really awesome: find some pictures and create cool prints with them. Then send them to someone as a surprise. You don't have to be amazing at photography to do that, but it would make their day. Shutterfly can help you with your creations.
11. Donate. Donate. Donate. If you already are donating, then keep up the good work. There are many non-profits that could all benefit from our blessings financially or through other means as well. We may not all have that $5 million like Drew Brees has, but we can at least spare a million, right? Yeah, that was a little bit of sarcasm. Seriously though, most churches have benevolences that can help you find ways to help out and I am sure could even ask Google, Alexa, or Siri how you can be a blessing to those in your community as well.
12. Keep making me excited about logging into social media. There are so many beautiful pictures, funny jokes and memes and even things that stir up my emotions a little bit. Let's do our best to not make any of this political. We need to use social media to encourage, to be a light (credit to brother T.J.), to share our gifts and talents, and most importantly love one another.
I know there are many people out there already doing some amazing things, and it is awesome to see the hearts of so many people pouring out in different ways. The good Lord doesn't expect anything but our best at all times, and this is really a time when he wants us all to unite and be grateful for what we have.
I leave you with this (thanks again to Brother T.J. for reminding me of this last Friday). Let your light shine. Let shine so you can pull others out of the darkness. We as a whole can pull out of this darkness together. It won't be easy, but we can rise up and this too shall pass. -
I want you to consider the words that this man once said. This is by a famous basketball coach some of us once knew of back in the 80s and 90s. He fought courageously against cancer and his words still inspire many to this day. Perhaps they might make you pause and reconsider how you live the rest of your year - "To me there are three things everyone should do every day. Number one is laugh. Number two is think -- spend some time in thought. Number three you should have your emotions move you to tears. If you laugh, think and cry, that's a heck of a day." Those words were once expressed by the late great, Jim Valvano. Ponder those words and think about how they can help us in this phase of life that we are all going through.
Over the last few days I have tried to think of ways we can help others. Our city needs it. Our county needs it. Our state needs it. Our country needs it. We all need some light in some way, but we can all give some light as well. It doesn't have to be like Drew Brees, who shelled out five million bucks to take care of his folks down in NOLA, but if we are passionate about helping others, then we MUST and WILL all find a way.
I made a small list (I call it small compared to other lists I have made, wink, wink), and I know that some of you are already doing some amazing things out there.
1.Take time to pray for those affected by this, daily.
2. Love thy neighbor and bake something for them. Just be sure to leave it on their doorstep. I am not really experienced at this one, but I do know where to find some awesome sweets in this town.
3. Write letters to folks. If you a bunch of stationery sitting around, then use it. Tell yourself you are going to send a card to one person a day for the next two weeks. You can entitle them "cards from quarantine". If you need to find addresses, you might be able to use whitepages.com. Sometimes you can locate folks on there. If you need stamps, I might be able to deliver some. I'll trade a baked good for some stamps.
4. Face Time someone you haven't seen since you were quarantined. If you don't have an Apple product then use Skype, or Facebook Messenger or Zoom.
5. Order donuts, or juice for a clinic, fire department, police department, etc. Heckfire, just drop them off some baked goods if you are uber talented. Maybe even call up a few friends, go in together and order some pizzas for folks working in the line of fire.
6. Check on those you know who are struggling through this. There are folks who can't handle the quarantine as well as others, so call them or text them daily. If you are able to get away from the house for a few minutes deliver them some food with a sweet note.
7. Help those local businesses who are doing everything they can to survive during this hard time, especially the local restaurants. You know you are not going to survive on your own cooking for that long. I have done it for 15 days and I am almost getting tired of it personally. Seriously though, support those local diners that you love so much.
8.Be very kind to everyone. As a guy on the radio said recently, we need to practice maximum grace.
9. Go silent for two hours and interact with those around you face to face. That means wi-fi off, phone face down, Bluetooth off, computer off, and TV off. If you still listen to an old AM/FM radio, then turn it off, too. The idea is to distance ourselves from our gadgets and be in the present with others. Smile, listen, read together, and just share stories.
10. Share your talents with the world. At least through social media that is. If you can sing then host a little Facebook Live session at your piano or with your guitar. If you are a great writer, then share some of your writings. If you are an artist, show everyone what kind of art you are awesome at creating. Photography nerd (that's this guy), then upload one of your favorite shots so folks can see something awesome every day that is yours. You want to do something really awesome: find some pictures and create cool prints with them. Then send them to someone as a surprise. You don't have to be amazing at photography to do that, but it would make their day. Shutterfly can help you with your creations.
11. Donate. Donate. Donate. If you already are donating, then keep up the good work. There are many non-profits that could all benefit from our blessings financially or through other means as well. We may not all have that $5 million like Drew Brees has, but we can at least spare a million, right? Yeah, that was a little bit of sarcasm. Seriously though, most churches have benevolences that can help you find ways to help out and I am sure could even ask Google, Alexa, or Siri how you can be a blessing to those in your community as well.
12. Keep making me excited about logging into social media. There are so many beautiful pictures, funny jokes and memes and even things that stir up my emotions a little bit. Let's do our best to not make any of this political. We need to use social media to encourage, to be a light (credit to brother T.J.), to share our gifts and talents, and most importantly love one another.
I know there are many people out there already doing some amazing things, and it is awesome to see the hearts of so many people pouring out in different ways. The good Lord doesn't expect anything but our best at all times, and this is really a time when he wants us all to unite and be grateful for what we have.
I leave you with this (thanks again to Brother T.J. for reminding me of this last Friday). Let your light shine. Let shine so you can pull others out of the darkness. We as a whole can pull out of this darkness together. It won't be easy, but we can rise up and this too shall pass. -
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