Monday, November 21, 2011

Caring For One Another...

Recently I read an article about a family in the  local paper from my hometown.  The mother of the young husband had just lost his mother. While the family and out of town family were away from thir rental home,  attending the funeral in a nearby town, the house was destroyed by fire.  The next day, rain poured into the building, further damaging items that might have been retrieved. Soon after, the wife was cleaning her father in law's house, and she fell on the stairs, badly bruising her body.

Sometimes when it rains, it pours", as the old saying goes.  My heart went out to those kids and their youngsters. When I can find an address, I will send a donation to be used for replacement of their possessions.   While I was reading facebook one day, I discovered that the young mother is the daughter of one of my friends.  Further reading made me aware that many are stepping up to help this family, as it should be in any community.

In our own area, one of the first things we took note of was the wonderful spirit of giving when there are those. The TV station we most watch does 25 days of wishes, choosing one story per day and then provides that wish for a needy family. Churches join together each Christmas to collect and hand out warm clothing for those who may be homeless, or can't provide them for themselves.  Our own church congregation is always collecting something for families in trouble.  There have been collections  of clothing and toys for grandparents who suddenly found themselves with  custody of  their four little grandchildren. One of our members is ill and cannot work, and his wife, too, is out of work...we've helped by providing non-perishable foods. We've taken 'love offerings' for two couples who have had fires in their homes.  No one complains about being asked. We truly are taking care of one another, because we care!

In recent weeks, our neighborhood has had some vandalism, to the point where we've met together to discuss what we can do to keep our subdivision safe.  Currently we are in the process of forming a real neighborhood watch. We've determined that it's up to us to stay aware and make others aware of any suspicious activity. We've made inquiries with the Sheriff's Dept. to inform ourselves of the best way to handle any crime, should we discover it, while we wait for the law enforcemnt to arrive. We expect a Deputy from the Dept. to speak at our next meeting. First and foremost, we are watching each other's homes, elderly residents and children in our subdivision. We are showing that we care, not only about our own property, but about other people and their safety. 

That's what we're all here on earth for....to show others that we love them. Caring for people and their situations proves that love.  Remember folks...the Golden Rule says, "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."   You never know when you might be on the receiving end, so you might want to give your caring today!