Random Thoughts

Lots of my mind.   A miles long “to do” list with more that needs added to it swirling in my head.   Decisions to be made.   Laundry to be done.   Suitcases to unpack.   A. DAY.   OFF.   WORK. “Should” use the time wisely to focus on getting things accomplished.   “Should” triage the to-dos and focus on steadily checking them off.   Should, should, should, should, should. Instead, I slept in.   Woke up around 10:30 am, tossed around the bed a bit thinking I “should” go back to sleep.   No, I “should” get up.   What is the deal with all of these should s ?? Then I heard someone on the front porch.   That’s not that unusual – could be someone dropping off donations for the free pantry, an Amazon delivery, someone picking something up that I offered on Buy Nothing. The doorbell rang.   I peeked out the blinds – it was my artist friend.   She has been coming to work here daily for the last month a...

It’s easy to forget that we all have a story. I got reminded of that fact today, and I am so grateful. I have been away from my beloved “Little Yellow Free Pantry” for about 2 months and I really missed it.   It was in great hands, neighbors kept it stocked and well taken care of.   But I missed checking it, filling it, and most importantly, interacting with people who stop to get groceries out of it. So today when I saw someone getting food from the pantry, I was super excited to go out and chat.   There are some regular visitors that I know and I can grab them their groceries from the basement supply without needing to ask what they are hungry for because I can predict.   But today’s visitor was someone new – I had never seen him before.   Extra exciting! I went out and said hello and the visitor seemed open and kind.   We began a conversation right away.   He said that his buddies live nearby and they told him how “awesome our house was” or ...

I learned this lesson years ago, but apparently I needed a refresher course this evening: We “pay” with what we can.   “Currency” does not take one form. The first person to visit the Little Yellow Free Pantry gave me my reminder of that concept.   The pantry has been open since 2:00 pm on Saturday, but as of 6:00 pm Monday night far we had not had any shoppers, only DONORS!   And we have had some amazing donors!!   But I have been busy trying to figure out how to best get the word out to people who actually need the food. But then I looked outside, and in the darkness, I saw the little glow of the pantry lights…   I thought, “Someone is putting MORE in there?   It is chock full right now!”.   Then I saw a bag on the ground…   I grabbed a mask, stepped out on the back porch, and said, “Hello!”.   A woman answered back, and I walked closer to the pantry to talk. I introduced myself and she told me her name.   She was an older black...