It shouldn’t matter where you are from or where you are headed, it all boils down to do we take care of each other or not?
And y’all. My heart says we have to take care of each other. This is the essence of humanity. When we take care of each other, regardless of the deep doo doo you are in right now, there is the possibility of a moment of beauty or love or relief or comfort because there are supportive people in your life.
So how do we make it happen? How do we take care of each other?
We can take care of ourselves. Self-care is an enormous topic unto itself, and it is cliché to say that we have to take care of ourselves in order to take care of others. That doesn’t change how important it is, though.
We can be honest, good and bad. We need to express our pain. We need to share our good news. And we even need to be silly or outrageous.
We can listen. We can slow down and hear what someone really wants or needs to say. Maybe it’s face-to-face, phone call, maybe an email or even on social media. Regardless of the communication method, we can give each other the gift of listening.
We can encourage each other. Let’s be unfailingly kind and encouraging to each other. It doesn’t cost us a thing. It can be as simple as acknowledging someone’s work and reminding them how important they are or what an impact they make. You never know when your encouragement is THE thing that keeps someone going.
We can reach out. Did someone cross your mind today? Tell them! I am always so grateful when someone messages me out of the blue with a virtual hug, funny meme, card in the mail, kind text… The reality is that we don’t know who is feeling isolated. A surprise “I thought of you today” may make all the difference.
We are all just trying to get by and life can be so horribly hard. Let’s be that small comfort and brief respite for each other. Let’s take care of each other.
Our family, church, and some great friends recently come together to help some families living in poverty in Guatemala. This is one example of how a little bit of money and time can make a huge difference in a family’s life. Adam Clemmons and his wife Vilma, missionaries in Guatemala, helped us make it all happen.