Helping Hands

**I interrupt this post for a late contest winner announcement: 


I am a bad blogger. I totally forgot to post a winner for Monday's cheesy contest. There were a few people whose guesses I'm counting as close enough. They all guessed a conference, and I got registration for World CON in Reno. (*grins) So I entered the guessers into the random generator (to be fair) and it pulled up RivRe. Congratulations! I'll be emailing you for mailing info soon.


You may now return to your scheduled Wednesday blog.**

My dear blog readers. With my birthday, other summer activities, and the addition of two extra posts this week, I think I’m kind of blogged out. Out of subjects. Out of thoughts. Out of time. All that stuff.

So today’s post is me taking a break from thinking too hard. But I will leave you with the following little bits of inspiration.

Stay tuned Friday for a post about friendship.

Can Service be Selfish?

**Warning. Random thinking may be involved in this post**

I had the opportunity to do something the other day. Something good. As with most things we choose, there were a thousand possible consequences to my choice to do, or not do, this thing.

But as I weighed the pros and cons, the whole issue boiled down to one point. It felt like the right thing to do. And for me, that’s all that mattered.

Well, okay. Not ALL, all. But maybe the most important thing.

I have this thing—this, IDK maybe it’s compassion?—where I feel like the condition of the human spirit is one of the most important parts of life. Like, it should be a priority, you know? And my spirit is always healthier when those around me, or who I care about, are somewhat balanced.

While this sounds like a good thing, it also feels selfish. I have to wonder if I serve others more for their benefit or mine. If I do something—no matter how good—that inadvertently (eventually) comes back to benefit me, did I really do it for them? Or for me?

Don’t get me wrong. I don’t generally do nice things for selfish reasons. At least, not consciously. But it becomes a cause and effect thing. Like one of Newton’s laws. Every good deed must reap a reward. It’s Karma.

Has my subconscious figured this out? And if it has, are my good decisions really selfish?

If that’s true, I don’t know how to change it. Maybe it shouldn’t be changed at all. Or maybe there’s more I can do to serve others. (Wait, did I just say maybe? Make that definitely.) Maybe I should stop over thinking it and go with instinct.

I’m not necessarily looking for the universe to bow to my needs when I hold the door open for someone, you know? (Though I wouldn’t complain if it did.) My life is full of miracles. And if events in it don’t always work on my timetable or the way I want them to happen—well. I’m probably better off. Because when it comes down to it, I choose to do the things that make my spirit feel balanced.

And that, my friends, is the healthiest way to be.

**Random thinking concluded. Carry on.**

One Small Idea

I spent most of last week online attending a virtual writer’s conference known as WriteOnCon What a great experience for me and all the other attendees. And what an amazing thing these organizers have accomplished.

They started with an idea, grabbed it by the horns and took off with it. By thinking outside the box, they managed to bridge the gap between 11,000 authors, agents, and editors across the globe. And next year it will most definitely only get bigger.

Why would they do such a thing? They all have agents, and most of them are working on book deals, or have books being released in the next year or two. They didn’t create this conference for themselves. They did it because they believe in paying it forward. This is their way of serving the writing community. Of giving back to the world. This is their way of reaching out to other authors and saying, “Here, let me give you a hand.”

And it has nothing to do with selling their books. But because of their efforts, books will sell. It’s a side effect, but not the reasoning behind the plan. For them, it’s about service. And maybe a little about Karma. It’s about a community of people taking hands and holding onto each other to make sure every single person has the means and ability to make it to the top.

It leaves me wondering what more I can do to help others around me. Am I stuck thinking inside the lines, too afraid to venture out and do bigger things? Are you? I don’t think service has to include thousands the way it did for these particular authors. It could just be one person. One person for whom you can make a difference.

There’s no way to know who will be that person for you, so all you can do is try every day to pay it forward to someone, to do something for another person, and eventually, it will come back. A side effect of something bigger and better than you ever realized.

All it takes is one small idea. Think about it.

A Teaching Opportunity

(Or Pay it Forward...)
By Nichole Giles

Saturdays are generally busy at our house. There’s always a sports game to attend or play, birthday parties, teenagers with plans, and someone who needs a ride somewhere. It’s the day set aside for yard work, laundry, and anything else that doesn’t get done earlier in the week.

This past Saturday was no different. While I ran the kids around taking care of some errands, Gary mowed the lawn. Our plan was to meet at home by 2:00 so we could get our oldest daughter to a basketball tournament in another city and both watch her play, but when 2:00 came around, I was home, and Gary wasn’t.

He called, though. “Hi,” he said. “I took the grass out to the green-waste plant, and while I was there, a guy accidentally locked his keys in his truck—and his toddler son.”

“Uh, oh,” I said. “That’s not good.”

“Nope,” he said. “They called the police, but since it’s on the borders of three different cities, they’re all fighting over who has to go. Not only that, dispatch got the address wrong and sent them to the dump.”

“That stinks,” I said, meaning it literally. If you’ve ever been to a green-waste/ sewer plant, you know exactly what I was talking about. Poor guy.

“Anyway,” Gary continued, “have everyone who’s going to the game ready, and when I get there, I’ll grab the Slim-Jim out of my patrol car and stop to help him on our way. Otherwise, that poor kid will be stuck in that truck all day.”

When he got home, we all piled in our truck, and Gary took the time to grab his Slim-Jims and lock picking tools. (Because you never know when a cop’s going to go criminal. Kidding.) By now we were feeling fairly rushed—knowing Brittany had to be to her game a few minutes early. But—as we explained to her—sometimes you stop what you’re doing to help someone else. Even if it makes you late.

We drove in through the exit (to surpass an enormous long line) and zipped right up to the distressed father. Gary shoved a wedge in his window, popped the lock, and shook his hand—it all took a total of about two minutes—and we were on our way again, glad to be able to breathe through our noses as soon as we drove away.

As we left, Madison asked, “Daddy, why did you help that man?”

He looked at me, and I looked at him, both understanding that this was one of those teaching opportunities we sometimes come across as parents. He said, “Heavenly Father helps us all, but most of the time it’s through other people. It was our turn to answer someone’s prayer today, and when you get an opportunity like that, you always take it.”

I nodded, adding, “You never know when someone else will be sent to answer one of your prayers. Would you want them to ignore the opportunity?”

“Besides,” Brittany piped up, “how would you like to be stuck standing outside the truck smelling that?”

Madison wrinkled her nose. “Ew, no. That’s disgusting. That place reeks.” She patted Gary on the shoulder. “That was nice of you, Dad.”

And that was the end of the discussion. We made it to the basketball game—not only on time, but early, as we’d meant—and our day continued without even a slight hitch. It didn’t hurt us one bit to go back and help that person and his child, but it did give us a rare opportunity to teach our children how important it is to help others—even strangers.

And, you know, it doesn’t hurt our karma, either. One more thing I absolutely believe in. Pay it forward, and it will always come back.