Weekend Kindness
Reaching Others Through Kindness

If there?s one thing that I?ve learned while being between jobs, it?s that there are always needs and the more that you?re able to meet the needs around you, the more the people that are around you will be blessed.

So, this weekend, be alert to the needs around you?it could be something as simple as needing some help getting into or out of a store, helping do a chore around the house that you do not normally do, or being a friend to someone in need?but meet that need.

Don?t do a half job.  Don?t get in it half-way and bale.  Make the decision to meet a need and finish the job.

You?ll be happy you did, and you?ll have made a difference.

This weekend, the United States of America will celebrate its independence from Great Britain.  It was 233 years ago this year that our Founding Fathers signed the Declaration of Independence and stated that we were going to be free from the King?s rule.

Take time to thank God this weekend for your liberties and freedoms.  Pray for your leaders.  Attend a parade or a fireworks display.  Take some time to be with family and friends.

It?s a great time to reflect on who you are as a person and who your country is and what it will be.  For a country is, according to the Declaration of Independence, what the people make it to be.

This week has been full of family for me.  Last Sunday, I went to a graduation party for my previous pastor?s oldest son and then travelled back home to celebrate (belatedly) my sister?s birthday.

Tuesday, my sister and her friend travelled to my house and spent the night.

Tomorrow we?re off to spend some time with my in-laws?to visit with my nephew and family.

Spending time with family?unplugged and talking around dinner or a campfire?helps you bond with them, helps you to reconnect and to re-establish roots.

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I know it?s been a while since we?ve done an actual ?Weekend Kindness? challenge?I mean, I don?t know if the whole ?internet grand meme? thing has gone the way of Thursday Thirteens, but as I see many blogs still doing different memes, I thought I?d offer this one.

For anyone that does it, and mentions this post (drop a comment or a trackback) I?ll include a link in the body of this post back to you.

Traditions

What family traditions do you and your family have that make you unique?

My mother is the one in the family that tried to establish different traditions.  One of them was always including one of those chocolate orange candies in our Christmas stockings.  Another was always making sure to kiss us good night.

As far as things we always did, we always made it to church every Sunday (morning and evening) and Wednesday nights.  They always made sure we were at Vacation Bible School?either as workers or as students.

What different traditions do you have?  Anything exotic?

On Friday we talked about taking some time off away from family.  The problem is that if you?re really going to spend time at a location far from your children, you need somewhere to stay?somewhere that will have the amenities of home without the reminders of the stress.

One option is to find a bed and breakfast.  There are many that have all sorts of features: massages, breakfast (of course!) and quaint little towns.  Plus you don?t have to clean up the house.

Another option, if you want to stay away from hotels, is to find a place that does Vacation Rentals.  There are sites on the web that can help you find Florida Vacation Rentals or if you want to get off the mainland but still be in the U.S., there are Hawaii Vacation Rentals.

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I don’t know when it happened, but sometime between the first time I realized I liked coffee and the time when Starbucks appeared on every street corner in America, coffee changed from just something that I drink to an event to be savored and enjoyed.

Oh, I still drink coffee every morning just as part of the routine (a readily available brand that won’t break the budget), but when I go out for coffee, it’s not just to get coffee, but to enjoy the aroma of the coffee shop, the small tables set up for intimate conversation, and the handful of other folks who are enjoying the experience as much as I.

While the coffee is often too strong at the local coffee shop, I’ve learned that two packs of Sugar in the Raw and a pretty decent serving of half and half will do the trick and gives me a treat that I don’t indulge in at home, where my coffee of choice is generally just black.

For my husband, however, going out for coffee does not have the same appeal. Although he is learning to appreciate the difference between store brands and freshly roasted coffee, he is just as happy most of the time with staying home and brewing Seattle’s Best in our coffee maker and sitting on the front porch as we drink every lost drop.

I know it seems like a very silly thing to get exicted about and to feel loved because of, but on those rare occasions when my husband wakes up on Friday or Saturday morning and says “Let’s go out for coffee and read the newspaper there,” I think that he truly, truly loves me. There is more to this gesture than just saying, “Let’s go somewhere,” because if he just wanted to go somewhere with me it would be hiking or fishing or golfing or some other activity that he really enjoys.

But when he says, “Let’s go out for coffee,” I know that he’s suggesting it because he loves me and because he knows how much I enjoy the experience and how good it makes me feel to savor a cup of coffee that’s a little too strong unless it has just the right amount of cream and sugar.

February 24 through March 1 is National Eating Disorder Awareness Month. Typically this is frame around a “Love Your Body” week (or month) on most college campuses and communities! Here, we’ve been loving our bodies all month long. It’s been truly a great month of educational opportunities and empowerment to really celebrate the body you have and not critique it for it’s faults.

Yesterday, I had the honor of listening to four women from outside the United States. A woman from Sudan, a woman from India, one from Mexico, and one from Bocstand heritage. Each woman had such a beautiful perspective of beauty in their culture. Many woman brought pictures of their children, mothers and friends. When asked the question, “what do you love about your body”, not one mentioned a physical characteristic, but gave thanks to having a healthy body, all their limbs and to have not be taken over by illness. How cool!
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