Help Others Help You

Welcome back for another cruise down the boulevard. Let’s pretend that it is sunny and 75 with a beautiful sunset going down over the water. When was the last time that you helped someone else? When was the last time that you volunteered for something? Volunteering and helping others are the fastest way to actually help yourself without realizing it. What I mean by this is when you help out another person and do it for the sole purpose of helping them, you get something in return. After you help someone you will usually feel “good”. You know what I mean, go back to the second sentence of this post and imagine that feeling. That’s the one I am talking about.

            People all around the world need help every day. It can be as little as holding the door open for someone pushing a stroller or offer to pay the utilities for someone that is about to lose their house because they can’t pay their bills due to a medical emergency that happened and you offer to cover their utilities. The point is, if you want to volunteer, there are options everywhere. You just need to look.  Growing up I use to help at a food bank that my grandfather actually was in charge of for quite some years. As a little kid it wasn’t my favorite thing to do or look forward to though. When my parents would say we were going I would be hesitant and not want to. Once I got there though, things would change. I would start to get that good feeling from just the first family I help carry groceries for. These are people just like you and me that had fallen on hard times and just need some help. All I did was carry food. I didn’t think it was anything special, but the way that most of these people would thank me and be truly grateful for the help, would change my attitude. As the day would go on and we would help more people, that feeling got better and better. I'd start having more conversations and it felt good to see a smile on other peoples faces. By the end of the day when we would leave, i'd always feel comfort in knowing that we made a difference in someone’s life that day.

            Many people volunteer at children hospital wings and really do everything they can to make those kids feel just a little more at ease with whatever it is they are dealing with. When you give back and volunteer, you may be inspiring someone else to do the same as well. Whether it is the person that you helped or a friend that watched you go volunteer, it is likely that they may go and do the same because they can see the way that it made you feel and the way that it made an impact. I truly believe that what goes around comes around and that can happen in so many different ways. You never know if you may need help one day,  and when you do, I know you will be grateful when someone is there for you.

            I want to challenge you all to find a way to either volunteer in the next month or find a way to help another person. I understand with current conditions it may be a little hard to get out there and feel safe. By all means, only do something if you feel safe doing it. I will look into volunteering somewhere myself, or see what I can do to either help another. If you have any good ideas in the local Detroit area let me know! If you aren’t from this area, then maybe comment below something you could do in your area. During these pandemic times, there are more people than ever that could use a hand.

 

            Much Love and God Bless