Something I want to pass down to the girls (and any future kids) is the ingrained notion of being a helping hand wherever it is needed. Sure, helping other people takes time, most of the time it doesn’t garner any glory (unless you’re part of a civic organization that tracks specific outlets)… perhaps it gains a spoken thank you, a hug, a shared meal.. but really that’s it. I never mind when my husband volunteers to help do something for someone. Sure, it usually takes away from time I would have ‘help’ with our own kids, but sometimes there is a need for a man to help with a job, and one isn’t readily available, or is ill or injured, etc.
We were all set to help today with putting in a fence so someone could have an outer area for their dog today. It was a last minute thing, and does take away from some things we wanted to do on the holiday, but it’s really one of only 2 feasible times…I said we were all set until we realized that no one had called to find out where all the electric, gas, etc. lines are–and we don’t want to dig into those, so we’ll have to help out another day. I’m sure we’ll still go get the materials this morning (or at least Matt will), but I don’t think the fence construction will get done today. Oops!
Yesterday I had the opportunity to be a helping hand. A young lady from our church was graduating. We’re awfully fond of the family (all 3 generations of it)… so I sent a Facebook message offering help. It wasn’t replied to, but I figured in all the preparations, they just hadn’t gotten around to it yet. So after church, I flagged down the mom, who looked uncertain if she needed help. Another lady also volunteered and that kept the grandparents out of the kitchen at least part of the time and allowed them to visit while we filled fruit cups, washed and dried dishes as they were emptied, and in general allowed everything to run smoothly behind the scenes. It was nice to be able to do something to ‘give back’ in a small way to this family, who has been generous to us in handing down clothes, teaching Sunday school, etc.
I’m so glad that my parents instilled the value of helping in me from an early age. It didn’t even occur to me not to immediately wash my hands and plunge into whatever needed doing. It’s a blessing to have a spouse that understands and shares the same values. I hope that my kids will learn by osmosis and explained example when they’re older. I hope one day they find a community and friends that need help and plunge their (clean) hands into the dirty work. I hope we can raise them to be blessings to others.
So important to lead by example. It says 100 times more than your words.Your children will have your kind heart, they have seen it from the beginning. 🙂