Perhaps discontentment and looking for the next thing in previous years led me to call home more frequently than the seeming contentment and not looking for the next thing I have in my life currently.
I love my job. My roommates and I have learned to get along well. I bought a new fish friend. There is a new volleyball crew to play with every Tuesday. New interesting friends and relationships are popping up here and there. So, things are good. No major complaints to be made. No things to be worked through in deciding if I should stay or go.
But this week, in the contentment, something happened that is worthy to write home about.
A good something.
A kind something.
A generous something.
As I have said, I love my job. I get to help people help other people. Sometimes I get to be the actual helper, but mostly I coordinate the helpers.
This week we completed our 50th weatherization with Furman University Shi Center for Sustainability (their 100th). Weatherizations are a grant funded program where we go in and change out light bulbs and caulk seams and tighten up duct work and do many other things to create savings for the homeowner on the cost of their utility bills so they can stay in their home in a more energy efficient and affordable manner.
The homeowner's grown children were there helping with the project as well as a group from Mattress Firm. Eunice, the homeowner, was telling her children since all this work was getting done, the next step toward home improvement for her was to save up for a new mattress. She did not know where the other volunteers were from.
One of the Mattress Firm employees overheard her.
That employee took initiative and did something about what they heard.
By 3:00 that day a new mattress, box springs, fancy pillows and bed frame were delivered and setup in the home as the old ones were being hauled away. Though this seems small, to Eunice it was not. Her eyes teared up as they gave such a lovely kindness to her.
That's just one of the many stories I could tell as to why I love my job and why my life isn't much to complain about these days.
To get to work with people as they give their time, talents and resources without any pay or much recognition is a privilege I would not soon give up. Though a new mattress was easy to come by this day and may not seem like a huge deal in the scheme of things, stories like this are what give hope.
So, I may not have much to write home about in figuring out life right now, but I am glad to write home about stories like this.
