Last week was a bit chaotic. Due to a heavy cold that morphed for a day or two into flu-like symptoms, and then the aftermath of the CT school shooting, I found it difficult to summon the energy to blog online. But that didn't stop my commitment to the Random Acts of Kindness for December; they continued to be done, even though I wasn't reporting them daily. So here's a little catch up on how things went:
Monday 12/10: I signed up to "feed the elves". The staff members of The Family Giving Tree are really hard at work right now, putting in long hours coordinating the seasonal volunteers, pick up/drop off of donated gifts, all of the agencies involved, and the other office logistics aside. During the two weeks they are at their busiest, an opportunity is provided to the public to help provide lunch/dinner for these dozen or so "super elves" so that they can grab an hour to rest tired feet and angry bellies without having to scramble for it on their own.
Tuesday 12/11: This was definitely the worst of my sick days. Conveniently, I had already planned it as a vacation day, thinking it would be ideal for running around to do last minute holiday errands and mailings. When the day came, though, and I realized how horrible I felt, I realized that the best Random Act of Kindness I could do on this day was to take care of myself and keep my germy self out of the public face. While it ended up setting back my plans a bit, it was the smartest decision.
Wednesday 12/12: This ended up being another "repeat a previous act" day, but it's still a good one. Having come across several more non-fiction books that would be ideal for the Women's Prison Book Project that had ended on Nov. 30, I contacted the organization and they said "Please send them!" So on this day, I did!
Thursday 12/13: And yet another book-related act of kindness! I had read an article posted on FB courtesy of one of our local used bookstores regarding an annual reading program in our community that provides new and gently used books to underprivileged children, and how significantly low donations had been running this year (previous years they had near 80,000 donations at times, but this year they were barely at 2,000). I had just recently finished reading both the first Percy Jackson book, and the first book of The Hunger Games trilogy, and since both still looked brand new, I dropped them off in the collection box for this effort. Hey, older kids/teens need something to read too, right?
Friday 12/14: This was, of course, the day of that heartbreaking attack in CT (and a similar one involving a knife at a school in China). Much of the day was spent in confusion as the news reports came out, and in prayers for everyone involved. However, this was also the day that I had signed up for to "feed the elves", so for a little while at least, it was about best face forward! I delivered piping hot pizzas, chicken wings, a couple dozen sodas and some mini-cupcakes to the big warehouse. While there, I was able to see a bit of the ebb and flow of toys being dropped off by companies, and picked up by the agencies for distribution to their kids. It was a much needed balance for the violence being described on the news, a reminder that people are good in this world, too.
Saturday 12/15: After being mostly cooped up the previous week due to illness, and having to deal with the sadness of the night before, I was ready to get out of the house with a friend and enjoy the holiday festivities--it would have been far too easy to wallow in depression otherwise. Despite weather reports calling for occasional showers, the day was pretty blustery and rainy. So while we didn't do anything specifically act related, the day was taken with a lot more patience, care, and caution than may have otherwise been displayed: letting drivers in, giving pedestrians plenty of room, and generally being aware of the people around me to help keep me, my passenger, and those around me as safe as possible in a world that isn't often so.
Sunday 12/16: A quiet Sunday spent at home with my kitties, but I was finally able to work on a task I'd been meaning to do for the last couple of weeks: going through some of my craft supplies to fetch beading items to give to a friend of mine who has been enjoying a rekindling of jewelry-making inspiration. I didn't unearth them all, but I was able to find quite a few things to pass on to her at work the next day. Much as I'd love to make something myself, I haven't been inspired to that task of late, and I'd rather someone who is find use for them than have them sit around unused in the house, even though beads don't take up a whole lot of room.
So that's how my week went. A new week is starting today and hopefully, now that I'm back up and functional, a return to the daily updates as I'd originally committed to. We'll see how it goes!
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