We're All In This Together - The Value & Power of Kindness

When I began this post almost 2 weeks ago, a few things came up that delayed finishing it. I now see God's timing in the delay of a post about the value and power of community. While this story isn't headline busting news like we're currently seeing, I truly believe it's the collective acts of loving kindness, big and small, that will lead to true change in the world. This post doesn't specifically address the situation at hand, but I believe its underlying message has a place in the healing process. We're all people of worth. Let us be kind to one another.

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Our lawnmower broke, again. My husband is a jack-of-all-trades, so he can usually fix it, but we have to order the parts because it's so old. With shipping being slow due to the pandemic, it'll be at least a couple of weeks before the parts arrive. As I write this, one of our neighbors, from a trio of men I have dubbed The Lawnmower Brigade, has shown up, volunteering to mow our (now embarrassingly high) yard. 

When we first moved here, the selling agency stopped the mowing service when the house sold. By the time we arrived with the moving truck, the yard was in much need of a trim. Physically and emotionally drained from the move, we weren't looking forward to mowing the next day. After we returned the moving truck, much to our surprise, the yard was mowed. 

We were blessed to move into a community that took us in with acts of kindness, before they even knew us.

In our rural area, most of our neighbors have livestock and pets. We've kept an eye out for escaped animals and corralled a stray or two back into the pasture. We care for each other's pets when on vacation. We even got to deliver the good news of a calf's birth to our neighbors and their thrilled granddaughter. 

Food is shared. When there is extra, it is given away. We've often come home to a bag of garden veggies hanging from our doorknob. We take each other meals when someone is sick or has surgery. We share holiday meals together when traveling to be with family isn't possible. We pick up groceries for each other during the pandemic.

A couple of years ago we were traveling back from a long day trip across the state for our son to accept a Scouting award. My car wasn't in the best of shape, and we blew a head gasket. In case you don't speak the language of mechanics, that's a very bad thing. Late at night, we had to pull over to the side of a busy, not to mention curvy, section of the interstate. There was no getting the car home. Before we had the chance to call for roadside assistance, a neighbor was calling, concerned because he noticed our lights weren't on yet at the house. Since the towtruck was only allowed to carry one passenger, our neighbor drove an hour and a half in the middle of the night to get the rest of us safely home.  

I encountered yet another wonderful neighbor shortly after we moved in, but at the time we didn't realize we were neighbors. There was a yoga class at the local community center, and I needed to start taking better care of myself. It was long overdue, but I couldn't imagine trying to do yoga. I figured I'd be the one to falling over (or worse), embarrassing myself. I emailed the instructor, to see if she would even agree to take me on. She encouraged me to give it a try. We soon realized I was her new neighbor, became fast friends, and she continues be a guiding light in this journey of life.  

I cannot express what these small, yet impactful, acts of kindness have meant to us in the short time we have lived here. Each one offering from their varying gifts and skills.

The neighbor mowing our yard right now stays super busy with his job and his farm. I told him not to worry about it, that we'd have the mower fixed soon. His reply? 

Don't steal my blessing.

How does one argue with that?

Too often, we are conditioned to have an I can do this all on my own attitude in life. I was once like that as well. 

I urge you to reconsider. 

We're all in this thing called life together, and we're meant for connection and community. We're meant to share our unique gifts and skills to enhance the lives of others. "For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others" Romans 12:4-5.  

We are all important members of the community in which God has placed us, whether it be your physical neighborhood, your online community, or any other community in which you find yourself. 

Don't underestimate your contribution. What comes easy to you may be a godsend to someone else.

When we "carry each other's burdens" (Galatians 6:2) and "consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds...encouraging one another" (Hebrews 10:24-25), we are creating a better life for those around us, and fulfilling the second part of the Great Commandment Jesus gave to us, "Love your neighbor as yourself" (Matthew 22: 39).  

What is an act of kindness that had an impact in your life?

What small act of kindness can you do for someone today?

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My yoga instructor and I remain wonderful friends and she continues to be an inspiration. After several years of practice within our community, she recently achieved her dream of opening her own yoga studio. In light of the pandemic, she now offers online classes at FulFlow Yoga. If you're interested in beginning or maintaining your journey of better self-care, physically, emotionally or spiritually, I encourage you to check out her site.

All scripture is quoted from the NIV Bible.