Touch the Life of a Stranger in Need

This is really such a daily part of my life that even though I’m setting it into the accomplished goal side it will always be ongoing. It’s funny…..just when I think I have reached my max and grown weary from reaching out to others and decide I want or need to take a break….an opportunity arises that I just can’t turn my back on….who else will do it if we don’t? We have to reach out….especially if we expect to have somebody reach out to us in our own time of need.

Well….I had hoped I wouldn’t have to post an entry of this nature for quite a while.
In our first letter writing project I told you all about one of our homeless men named Tony. He had been diagnosed with colon cancer and opted to forego treatment. He passed away last week.
My husband and I had been working with him for years and truly grew to love him. His story was a tragic one as to how he came to live on the street….certainly not how we usually presume that they are just lazy and chose to be this way. He was one of the first homeless people I met when I started working out on the street and it only took a short time to truly come to love him. He was sweet and humble and haunted by the tragedies of his past.
He lived in a makeshift tent in a tiny patch of woods in the heart of the city. He didn’t have much but what he did have he gave freely to the other homeless he was friends with and even invited my husband and I to come to visit him and have dinner with him in his little tent. He seemed embarrassed that all he could offer was a can of sardines but was so thankful that we accepted his invitation.
Sadly we never got to enjoy that dinner as his little camp was raided by some teens who decided that it would be fun to pick on him since he wasn’t a “normal” member of society. They took his little kerosene lantern and burned down his tent,beat him up badly and tried to set him on fire but he was able to fend them off.
We were among the first he came to after it happened and we were able to get him more of the supplies he had lost. It broke my heart to see his broken lip and bruised face and eyes.I wanted to hunt down those punks and take out my rage on them for their wicked heartlessness, but Tony wouldn’t hear of it.
I gained more respect and love for him after that than I ever had for him….this man that had nothing….and had the little bit he did own destroyed in cruel play had more forgiveness in his heart than me, the person who was supposed to be helping and encouraging him.
Just the thought of not being able to see him again and hug him or tell him I love him or see his smile has me in tears even now. He will be greatly missed.
The cards that were sent for him from some of you I will be giving to his family members at the memorial service tomorrow night.

I had an interesting conversation with KKitten about how something she is doing is impacting the life of somebody and as I was typing my last response to her I thought I should say this to all of you.

NOTHING that you do for another is too small or insignificant. Whether it’s sending a card,holding a door open,buying a lunch or helping them reach something off a hgih shelf. Each thing we do, no matter how seemingly small or insignificant will send a spark of hope through the life of another. Like dropping a pebble in a lake. It’s a small thing…but the ripples it sends are wide. One, two or 50 pebbles may not seem like much in such a vast body of water,but kindness is infectious. Those people we do a kind act for will do one in turn for another and if we each drop a pebble here or there it builds and soon they aren’t just tiny ripples anymore….they are powerful waves that keep the water alive and moving.
Pessimists may say well there are so many out there…..there is so much hopelessness that those few aren’t going to make a difference.
Let me challenge your thinking. Instead of letting the vastness overwhelm you I challenge you to look that pessimist in the eye as you touch the life of another and say, “It mattered to THEM” and walk on.
We are each emmisaries and ambassadors to the world around us….take nothing for granted.

Well…...I kind of hoped and expected my mom to be home from the hospital by now. However she has some really nasty infections and even though she has been in since August 7th they have no release date for her even in sight. sigh
She’s doing pretty good but she could use some cheering up. She’s kind of down and beyond ready to go home.
Would anybody be interested in helping me cheer her up by sending some cards or notes?
If you don’t want to mail it you can email it to me and I’ll print it out for her.

Ok so I finally have some people who could use some encouraging cards and notes. If any of you are interested here is a brief bio on each.

1 Francesca-

An elderly Italian woman who is lonely and doesn’t go out much but is still as spry and sharp as a tack as ever. Her husband passed away over 13 years ago and she still misses him as much now as she did when he first died, he was the love of her life. She speaks good English but doesn’t read or write it with the same ease so notes should be kept simple and loving or you could give her a real treat if you know how to write in Italian.

2 Martha and Roger-

A mother and teenage son who are struggling to make it day to day. The husband has left and they are doing well on their own but due to health reasons she is unable to work so the stress of tight finances can sometimes discourage them. They could both use a note of encouragement that better times are coming.

3 Tony-

A homeless man who lost everything years ago after a major tragedy tore his family apart. He has been diagnosed with colon cancer and is so depressed with life that he has opted to forgo treatment. He needs to just be shown some unconditional love.

Thanks guys…...even though nobody has responded yet I have tears of joy anticipating a response!!!!! :D

PS- I’m going to use the same clip art picture as above on all requests for letters and cards. That way it will make navigating back through old posts looking for opportunities to write people much easier.

I haven’t been able to get online much for a while so to come back and see yall’s progress is AWESOME!!!!!!! You guys are amazing!!! :D
I’m going to catch up and comment now but just skimming over the posts I’ve seen so far totally warms my heart!!!! GOOD GOING!!!

So here is how this goal will work. People have expressed a desire to reach out and encourage the needy all year round. The goal that birthed this one where we sent cards and letters to Ronald Crawford was/is an amazing success because of all of your kindness. WOO-HOO!!!
So with this new goal we are going to expand that kindness to be more far reaching.
First however let me clarify something for all considering this goal:
People in need will be defined by me as follows.
a) they are homeless/temporarily living in a shelter
b) they are poor/struggling day to day to make ends meet (absolutely under NO circumstances will monies be requested or be allowed to be sent unless approved by me first and then it will NEVER be through a private communication but will ALWAYS be posted for the entire group to see.)
c) they are “shut-ins” who are either home or hospital bound due to lack of transportation or medical reasons.
d) they are victims of disaster (disaster includes any of the following: fire, flood, hurricane, tornado, earthquake etc)

If you want to help people in a hands on way in your direct area
this will be accomplished one of several ways.
1) You can post an entry under this goal requesting charity info and ideas for your area of the globe and the community of 43 will post ideas and info to help you in your efforts.
2) If you don’t want to post publicly the area that you live in you can contact me through 43P and if you tell me the area you live in I will do my best to get you either a list of local charities in your area OR I will get the information of an office in your area that will be able to get you such a list.

OR

If you want to send encouraging cards and letters to people in needNOTE:Rules do apply when doing this for the privacy and safety of all involved so contact me first. *

If you want to participate in this part of the goal contact me through 43P and I will provide a name and as much background info as possible and a third party address for your cards and letters to be sent to. Once they are received and forwarded to me I will personally forward them to the person in need. If you have any questions please feel free to ask me.

Lastly…..if you have information to share to help facilitate people trying to achieve this goal please feel free to post it in an entry under the goal. That will be greatly appreciated by all.
*DO NOT post the addresses or personal information of people who you know that are in need. If you want to submit someone for cards and letters please send me their info and tell me what you can about them and I will then post a request for people to send cards and letters. My reasons for being so strict are multi purposed so please don’t get the impression that I am merely trying to be difficult or controlling. I have the best interest of all in mind.

This goal can be as far reaching or as local as you choose to make it. It was created for you to be able to help in a way that fits your heart and your ability. If you want to keep it close to home and more hands on you can or if you choose to expand beyond your borders you can do that too. Whatever you’re comfortable with is what you do. All efforts will be a blessing.