As life changes…
There are beginnings, middles, and endings… restarts, refreshes and do-overs… all scattered along life’s journey. Not everyone experiences all of these ~ and I firmly believe that most of us set out ready to experience only the first scenario ~ a beginning, a middle and an end with no need for a re-start.
But there are those of us who come up against hurdles and facilitate change along the way. There are complications we never anticipated. The life changing moments or realizations that require a re-start, for reasons too vast and complicated to begin describing.
When in the midst of the many things we must sort out as life shifts, for happy or difficult reasons, receiving the smallest gesture of kindness from family, a friend, a neighbor or a co-worker can alter the balance of the entire situation.
I remember beginning a new chapter in my own journey, one that I had never expected I would take, but nonetheless, there I was. Having basic necessities for everyday living seemed manageable, particularly because I had always been an organizer and a list maker. For the every day essentials ~ yes ~ I had that under control. For a lot of other things ~ not so much. I suddenly felt quite overwhelmed and under prepared.
I had settled in on a Sunday to prep my weekly lunch and dinners, because I had been accustomed to living that way, and realized I had no spices. Quite literally I had none ~ no salt, pepper, garlic, cinnamon ~ absolutely nothing. My financial situation dictated what the grocery shopping experience would look like, and with spices being expensive, my weekly meal prep changed pretty significantly as I would only manage to add one or two essential spices to my pantry cupboard each month.
I made a promise to myself that as finances would allow, I would work towards making a difference for any person that I could sense needed the help that I once needed, by giving a gift basket of basic spices – by helping to stock a friends pantry. I understood the positive impact it would have had on my life, and through that self-awareness I felt inspired to help others.
Kindness makes a difference
A number of weeks later a friend met me for lunch during the holiday season and gave me a gift package. As it turned out, it was one of the only gifts I would receive that Christmas. I will likely forever remember what was in that package because of the significant impact it had on me, although to her it may have seemed a small gesture.
The complete contents of that gift bag lends itself to another story which I will write, but the importance to this story is that I reached inside on Christmas morning to find a pepper mill and a small container filled with black peppercorns, and my heart filled with an overwhelming feeling of gratitude and thankfulness. My friend, without even knowing it, had begun to do what I had promised myself I would do for others. She helped to stock a friends pantry that day.
I’m still unsure if she is aware how much that single part of the gift meant to me, and the only words I could find to tell her were “thank you so much for the beautiful gifts which I truly needed and will use and treasure.” Looking back now, unless she had ever been in a similar situation, she likely doesn’t know just how important receiving the peppermill and peppercorns were to me. And that’s okay… because I know, and I intend to use what I learned and to pay it forward as I move through life.
I still smile when I open my pantry and see the pepper mill ~ and the small container which once held the black peppercorns ~ both of which helped me to begin again. I keep the small container as a reminder that some of our greatest blessings come in the smallest and most unsuspecting vessels.
Love and blessings come to us in many forms. I hope this inspires you to be attuned to the softest cries for help from those around you ~ perhaps inspiring you to do something as simple as reaching out to help stock a friends pantry. Together, I know we can make our world a happier, more peaceful place to be.
I’m a proud mom, a friend to many, and have a profound belief in human kindness.
My goal to live a happy, healthy, and fulfilling life includes my love to write about things that resonate with me. My gift to you is sharing my perspective on living a happy life.
xx
