Generosity and Gratitude

Thank you for the party

But I could never stay

Many thangs is on my mind

Words in the way

I want to thank you falettinme

Be mice elf agin

~~ “Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)” by Sly and the Family Stone

I mentioned in a previous entry that I had a great birthday and the best part was the generosity of my family and friends who contributed to my birthday fundraiser for the Southern Poverty Law Center.

My fundraiser ended today and I am blown away by where I ended up. My goal was $50 and thanks to all of the amazing people I know, I raised $450!!

I honestly cannot begin to express how grateful I am to everyone who contributed. I’m not at a loss for words very often, but you all have left me speechless. (Ken would like to know your secret!)

I know that sometimes it seems like we can’t make a difference, and I know this was just a drop in the bucket. (If I ever win the lottery—which won’t happen until I start playing—I would have a blast figuring out where to give a bunch of it away!) But I still believe that seemingly small actions can make a difference. Something as simple and as easy as a smile can turn someone’s day around.

via GIPHY

Never underestimate the power of kindness. Together we can make the world a better and kinder place. It won’t happen overnight, but every step in that direction is a positive one.

Thank you all from the bottom of my heart.

Our eyes are open

There's a madman looking at you

And he wants to take your soul

There's a madman with a mad plan

And he's dancing at your door

Oh, what to do, oh

What to do

When the walls are built to crumble

There's a madman with a mad plan

And he waits for us to stumble

Oh, but our eyes are open

Yeah, they're really open

I say we rob from the rich

And blow down the door

On to the next

To dance with the poor

Jump on my shoulders

You can jump on my shoulders

~~ “Jump On My Shoulders” by AWOLNATION

Today (technically yesterday) was my birthday and it was a very pleasant one!

After running a couple of errands (my favorite clerk at the grocery store said, “Nice to see you!”), I did some of my favorite things. I listened to some great music and discovered some new stuff; I watered my plants and picked a bunch of cherry tomatoes and another zucchini; I finalized plans for us to meet up with some of my favorite people in the world Wednesday night; I watched some video of James Comey and petted the kitty. Sheeba was a happy cat.

What??

I wore some of my favorite things, including one of my “Lordy I hope there are tapes” t-shirts (yes, I have two), a pair of Daryl Dixon socks, and my book earrings that are the cover of The Stand. For a while, when it was warm in the afternoon, I was able to walk around without pants. What can I say? Little things make me happy.

Then I got some beautiful roses from Ken and opened my cards, and they all made me smile.

Throughout the day, I got well wishes from so many of my family and friends on Facebook and I think I managed to respond to each and every one! If I missed a couple, it is entirely my fault. There was a smile on my face for pretty much the entire day and that is nothing to sneeze at, my friends!

The absolute best thing, the thing that made me cry happy tears, was that this year, Facebook suggested a thing where you can “donate” your birthday to the cause of your choice. I got that notice about a week and a half ago, and after vacillating between Planned Parenthood and the Southern Poverty Law Center, I chose the latter. I donate to PP often and in the wake of Charlottesville, I thought the SPLC was an important cause to champion.

Facebook suggests a goal of $200 to start out with, but I wanted to go low-ball. I figured that maybe people would donate a buck or two, and if enough of my friends did that, it would mount up pretty quickly. So I set my goal at $50.

I was stunned when my very first donation was $50! I had already met my goal!

Today got even better. Multiple people donated today and as I write this, my family and friends have donated $370 to the SPLC and I am absolutely blown away. (I thanked everyone there, so I won’t repeat the thanks here.)

There are still three days left, so if you want to donate to my birthday fundraiser, you can do so here!

This was a small (but wonderful) reminder of the generosity of people and we are seeing that played out exponentially when it comes to our friends in Texas and on the Gulf Coast. It seems like lately we have been seeing the worst of humanity, so the generosity of my friends today and the generosity of the American people to our fellow citizens in Texas has been beyond uplifting. It has, for the moment, restored my faith in humanity.

I still believe that our innate goodness will win and I still believe that there are more of us than there are of them.

A huge and heartfelt thank you to everyone who donated today, whether to my fundraiser or to organizations like the Red Cross. This has been a wonderful reminder that we are stronger together and that when we help each other, we can do good, and sometimes even great, things.

Peace, love, and gratitude to all who choose to make a positive difference.