good deeds

A Good Deed Brightens Your Day

Lynette M Burrows

I was having one of those Very-Bad-No-Good-Days. One of the worst I’d had in a long while. When along came a total stranger and he turned my day and my attitude around. I’m not just saying that. There is science that shows good deeds and volunteer work reduces stress. I hope the story of a good deed brightens your day will do that for you. It may even inspire you to pay-it-forward. The Day Started Cold In August 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic was still going strong here in the USA. Because of my husband’s precarious health, we had kept a strict self-quarantine. Those precautions meant we’d both been healthier than we’d been in years. Then came the bad day. It was chilly outside but still August so I didn’t want to turn on the heat. So we layered up. As all the ladies know, 99% of women’s clothing does not have adequate pockets. Certainly not pockets that would hold even an old iPhone. I put on one of my husband’s soft, well-worn flannel shirts. Comfy and warm! And it had a chest pocket deep enough for my phone. I wore it all day. The Trouble Starts Our well-trained dogs followed […]

Love & Hope in the Pandemic

Lynette M Burrows

It’s good to see so many posts and articles praising and thanking our frontline workers. But there are many more examples of love and hope in the pandemic. Let’s look at a few. Row Venice Female gondola rowers in Venice — who are all part of a nonprofit organization called Row Venice — deliver groceries to the elderly and those who cannot shop for themselves. They also volunteer for local farmhouses, delivering organic produce and other products to the elderly and immunocompromised. Follow them on their Instagram account. PPE for Healthcare Workers A start up company, Augment Bionics, used to 3D print affordable prosthetics. Now the company prints PPE for healthcare workers. They need help to continue this effort. If you can afford it, visit their GoFundMe page. Caremongering Canadians, Mita Hans, Valentina Harper, and others started caremongering (a new word) on Facebook. . They wanted to turn scaremongering around into a positive. And they have. There are dozens of these Facebook groups performing acts of kindness for one another. You can search for caremongering and your city in the Facebook search bar. If you don’t have a group near you, why not start one?  Hand Sanitizer One of the many items […]

You Must Look for the Good News

Lynette M Burrows

It’s the holiday season in the U.S. and many other nations (though different holidays and traditions, see my December Celebrations posts). If you are on Facebook or Twitter, you cannot help but feel overpowered with the negatives—racism, gender discrimination, hate crimes, and on and on. And all the while there are beautiful, creative, and giving people all around the world making a difference with their big hearts and ideas. But to find it, you must look for the good news. I am not saying we should ignore the problems in the world, nor am I saying we should only read the good news. Making either exclusive would be to our detriment. But the good news gets little notice. And that hurts us, too. It’s especially disturbing during the holidays. It takes a little work to find the good news, because it lacks the sensationalism that gets clicks or sells papers. But it is well worth the time.  Documenting History These indigenous women are documenting and disseminating an endangered language, culture, and oral history. And they’re doing so in an environmentally friendly way. Read this article on Atlas Obscura.  Homes for Homeless Veterans The Right Step You’re in the bottom of […]