Giving Tuesday!

Did your Thanksgiving feast include more leftovers than you could possibly eat? Ours did! My son-in-law baked a 20-pound turkey for the four of us. Obviously more than we could eat, but we had a plan. A plan to give.

We tried to serve at a homeless shelter and other charitable organizations but they were fully staffed with volunteers, so we did our own thing. We used our "plan overs" to make individual bag lunches for the homeless. The homeless are not worthless. We tried to make a meal that would be a tiny feast for each one. 

Everyone pitched in and the dog waited patiently
to clean up any dropped tidbits.

My Sweetheart carved up the beautiful bird.

Son made turkey sandwiches on hearty sunflower bread.

I made GigiSnaps!

Bagged 'em up!

Son-in-law washed and dried the apples!

Set up our assembly line of 30 bags.
With our sandwich, apple and cookies,
we included a bag of chips, mayo and mustard
 packets, a holiday napkin, and a handwritten note!
Oh, and a Wet Wipe!

Put them in totes for easy distribution.

Found a park with willing recipients.

In five minutes or less all those lunches disappeared.

We learned from our new friends that they eat well on the holidays and most weekends. However, food is scarce on the weekdays. Don't wait for a holiday. Do your own thing whenever it works for you. Teach your children to give back. It brought us so much joy. The only sad thing was that we didn't do more. 

Happy holidays!

Life in the Bubble

In March we moved to a lovely community in Peachtree City, Georgia.The town encircles a nature preserve which offers frequent views of deer, squirrels, box turtles,and an occasional raccoon. Almost a hundred miles of cart paths wind through the forest, around lakes and golf courses. A relaxing evening for us consists of a cart ride to dinner and a stop along the lake to watch the sun go down.Peace envelopes us.

The teenagers nicknamed Peachtree City as "The Bubble." Their logic being, "There's nothing to do here." That makes me smile. Yes, there is a strong police presence. You will get a speeding ticket for going more than 40 mph.I am very grateful for that.Independent businesses thrive because box stores are limited.No movie theater exists within the city limits, but there is community involvement like I have not seen in decades.

On Halloween night our neighbors set up chairs and tables at the end of their driveways to dole out generous amounts of confectionery delights.Families decorated their carts and delivered scores of children to enjoy "drive-thru" trick-or-treating.Attracted by the brilliant orange lights outlining our cart, neighbors dropped by to introduce themselves. I might never have met them. Downside--I can no longer leave the house without make-up because I now know my neighbors.

Life in the Peachtree City Bubble does not protect me from political and social drama.The most distressing conflicts are those within the Christian world. The Enemy loves to watch us tear each other apart.If we do not extend mercy and grace to each other what can unbelievers expect from us? Not much.

My life in the Bubble must include God. Faith makes things possible, not easy. My trust is in Him. What does me expect from me?

He has told you, O man, what is good;
And what does the Lord require of you
Except to be just, and to love[and to diligently practice]
kindness (compassion),
And to walk humbly with your God [setting aside any overblown
sense of importance or self-righteousness]? Micah 6:8 (AMP)

That's pretty simple. Would you join me in praying for an extra measure of grace to let go of "any overblown sense of importance." If we let go of that, I believe it will release us from the anxiety and fear of judgment by others as we no longer judge them.