Random Acts of Kindness

This has been a busy week in the way of holidays. Yesterday was Valentine's Day and Presidents Day is the day after tomorrow. But did you know there is actually something significant about the entire week of February 10-16? It's Random Acts of Kindness Week. I read about it a few days ago, made a mental note, and then, admittedly, kind of forgot about it--until about 25 minutes ago when I witnessed something beautiful.

This afternoon, I drove 25 minutes to a store where I'd hoped to use a gift card I had recently received, only to find that the store was out of business. Not thrilled, I pulled out of the store's parking lot and back into traffic,sitting through the same traffic light twice, waiting to make a left-hand turn. Stewing in irritation over the wasted time, to say nothing of the wasted gas and gas money, I began to feel impatient.

Just then, I glanced out my window and saw a man struggling to push his out-of-gas car towards a gas pump at a gas station on the other side of the intersection. Not really thinking about anything other than when I might finally be able to make my left-hand turn, I watched him. He had rolled down his driver's side window and was trying to both steer and push his car by reaching his hand through the open window, using one hand to push on the steering column and the other hand to turn the wheel. It was slow going.

After a few seconds, a white pick-up truck turned into the parking lot, squeezing between the distressed car and the curb. The driver of the truck jumped out and helped the stranger push his car to the gas pump. Then, he smiled, waved goodbye, jumped back into his truck, and drove away. He had not even needed to purchase gas. He had simply seen a fellow human being in need, and had taken the opportunity to meet the need.

All my frustration melted away. What a beautiful act of unsolicited kindness I had just had the privilege to witness. I felt a lot like the Grinch must have felt when his small heart grew three sizes in one day. That pick-up truck driver knows he helped the man whose car was out of gas, but he has no idea how much he also helped me--and perhaps countless others who might also have witnessed his kindness.

When the light I had been waiting for finally did turn green, I thought as I drove home about how I had set out to find one thing--black shoes, and I had found something very different--human kindness.

What can you do to help someone today?

Free, Easy Valentine's Day Cards: Make Someone's Day

Almost every year, I spend a couple hours one night in late January or early February making handmade, personalized Valentine's Day cards for some of my friends and family. This year, though, the time somehow got away from me, and with Valentine's Day only a few short days away, I haven't even cut out my first construction paper heart. Last night, I decided that this year, I would simply have to accept the fact that I would not be able to send out Valentine's Day cards.

I resigned myself to that idea.

For about 24 hours. Something in me just couldn't let Valentine's Day go by without sending a single Valentine.

So I started thinking. You can find just about anything on-line these days, so I figured I could probably find some free, printable Valentine's Day cards. And I was right. Although it isn't quite the same as making personalized, individualized, handmade cards, the site I found did allow for lots of options and some customization, too. In fact, you can not only add text (in several fonts and colors) and "stickers" (sort of like Clipart), but you can also even add your own photo!

Shown here are just three of the available options for the front of the free, printable Valentine's Day cards available. There are 79 total options.

Visit the site by clicking here. To create, customize, and print your Valentines is completely free and requires absolutely no information from you. Only if you want to save your card(s) do you have to register with the site. The process was really easy, completely self-explanatory (though there are step-by-step instructions on the left-hand side of the screen if you need them), fast, and fun.

So, go on. Take just a few minutes and make a free, printable card. Let a few people know you are thinking of them.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Note: Once folded, the cards don't fit into any standard sized envelopes that I know of, so I simply sealed each one with a small piece of clear tape, wrote the addresses directly onto the backs of the cards, and affixed the stamps directly to the backs of the cards, as well.

The True Meaning of Being in Love

I have always loved Valentine's Day. To me, it has always just seemed like such a cheerful, festive, candy-heart holiday. In elementary school, I loved decorating re-purposed shoe boxes with pink, red, and purple construction paper until they morphed into special little mailboxes where classmates would drop Valentine's Day cards. In middle school and high school, I loved the anticipation of wondering whether or not any of my friends would have purchased a Candy-gram for me. Yes, I have always enjoyed this holiday during which it is acceptable to pair red and pink together.

But my junior year of college, I found myself approaching the holiday with a certain sadness in my heart. The year before, Valentine's Day had been fairly magical for me. I was in love for the first time; I had a bonafide Valentine. But now I found myself with the lover's holiday rolling around again, and I was alone.

Determined not to let my lack of romance ruin a holiday that had always brought me such happiness, I decided to spread as much love as I could. My best friend, one of my roommates, and I, procured a huge stack of construction paper in a myriad of colors, and one night shortly before Valentine's Day, we sat on the floor constructing personalized, handmade Valentines for our of friends and family members.

Having made probably two-dozen unique cards for so many people I loved, I looked forward to the day with the childlike enthusiasm I remember experiencing in elementary school. I could hardly wait to distribute my little gifts.

But I must admit, when I awoke early on Valentine's Day morning, I did feel a little stab of loneliness. I thought of all the girls I knew who had sweet, romantic plans for the evening--and I would be alone, probably studying. My spirits improved a little, though, when I remembered the bag of colorful cards sitting on the floor beside my bed. Even if I felt lonely, I could make other people feel a little more loved, and that thought brought me comfort.

It was still dark out when I got up and gleefully slipped the cards underneath the doors of my sleeping roommates. I was so excited imagining how happy they would be when they awoke to a small, thoughtful surprise.When I went downstairs to deliver a card to my male roommate, I was surprised to find him waiting at the bottom of the steps for me. A sculpted rose of copper was in his hand. He offered it to me.

"Happy Valentine's Day," he said.

"Happy Valentine's Day," I responded in surprise. "Did you make this?!"

"My sister. I asked her to make one for each of you girls. Look--she put your names on your roses."

I looked, and sure enough, each rose was labeled with each girl's respective name.

Truly, I was surprised--and I felt so loved. He had thought about each of us girls and made such an effort to make us feel special. I had awoken expecting to feel alone, and planning to make the best of it. But here I was, first thing in the morning, and I already felt less lonely.

To this day, I cherish the copper rose my roommate commissioned his sister to make for me, as well as for my three other roommates, for Valentine's Day. It is a constant reminder of the fact that love is all around us, and can become evident in our lives when we least expect it. It is a reminder to be grateful for and recognize all the loving people in our lives, and it symbolizes people's thoughtfulness and tenderness toward each other.

Shortly after, I left for my first class of the day, bringing with me my little bag of cards, having made cards for a few of my classmates. One of them was a girl named Kathy. To my surprise, Kathy had made a Valentine for me, as well. For the second time that day, I unexpectedly felt loved. Someone who I had not expected to think of me, had.

As we exchanged cards she said, "Remember the first day of class? I was really late? I felt like everyone in the class glared at me when I came in--even the professor. But I sat down across from you and you smiled at me."

I had forgotten all about that day, but remembered it instantly upon her retelling. I had had no idea that my one brief smile had put her at ease in a room she had felt was full of hostile people.

And so I went about the rest of my day, distributing Valentines and doing a pretty good job of not thinking about how alone I would be later that night when everyone else went out on their romantic dates. In my mind, I was The Only Single Girl in the World.

When I got home later that afternoon, I was greeted with Valentine's Day cards from my parents and both sets of my grandparents. So they had thought of me, too. In addition, my roommates seemed genuinely grateful for their construction-paper Valentines. 

I don't remember much about that night. As anticipated, it was just another night. I probably ate dinner, studied, and went to bed. I can't promise I didn't indulge a little in thoughts of the previous year's Valentine's Day, but I don't remember for sure. What I do remember is that I no longer felt lonely. I felt grateful. I felt loved. I felt pleasantly surprised. As it turned out, I was single--not alone. There was not romantic love in my life at that time, but there was a lot of love, in many other forms.

So if you find yourself single this Valentines Day, you're not alone; you're loved.

Valentine's Day is a day to celebrate love--in all the forms it takes. Love for your friends, your family, your pets, your co-workers, your neighbors, and yes, if you have one, your significant other. Don't for an instant think that being single means you should relegate yourself to your couch and watch sappy movies with nothing more than a gallon of ice cream for company (Does anyone actually do that? Where does that stereotype come from, anyway?). And don't for an instant think that just because you are not in love in the traditional, romantic sense of the term, you cannot celebrate love--or that you are not actually within love. As I learned one Valentine's Day several years ago, we are all truly in--surrounded by, immersed in--love. It is all around us. We just have to take note. So, celebrate Valentine's Day by consciously recognizing all the roles love plays in your life. Celebrate Valentine's Day by showing love in all the ways you can think to show it. Celebrate Valentine's Day by expressing gratitude for all the kinds of love you do have in your life. You don't have to be in love to be in--within, that is--love. Live in love.

On a side note, not long after that unexpectedly love-filled Valentine's Day, I met my forever Valentine. Just days before our first date, I had reconciled myself to the fact that I would probably never meet anyone to marry. After all, where in the world would I meet him? How in the world would I meet him? Above, we are shown at the top of Pike's Peak in Colorado during our honeymoon in the summer of 2007. I'd love to say we biked up the mountain, but the truth is, we only biked down.

Favorite Beef Stew

As you might have gathered by now, pretty much all of the dinners I make these days are slow cooker meals. One of our very favorite dishes is this beef stew recipe--we had it tonight, actually. It's really easy and really tasty.

You will need...
4 cups of chicken broth
2 beef bouillon cubes
2 lbs. stew beef
3 or 4 russet potatoes or red potatoes, chopped (and peeled if you want)
2 stalks celery, sliced
1-1 1/2 cups baby carrots or scalloped carrots

What to do...
1. Combine broth and beef bouillon cubes in slow cooker.
2. Add meat and vegetables.
3. Cover. Cook on high 6-7 hours.

To save time in the morning...
Chop the potatoes, celery, and carrots the night before, and complete steps 1 and 2. Place in refrigerator. This way, when you get up in the morning, all you have to do is plug the slow cooker in and turn it on.

Bonus: When you get home from work, your house is going to smell absolutely savory and delicious!

Helping Flowers Flourish For(what seems like)ever

Valentine's Day is just around the corner, and many of you will likely receive flowers from your friends, family, or significant others. Here are a few tips that can help maximize the life of your blooms.

1. Snip the Stem. When you first receive your flowers, hold the stems (just one at a time) at a slight angle under cold, running water and, with a pair of very sharp scissors, cut each stem about 1/2 an inch above its end. This helps expose a "fresh" stem-end that can more easily absorb water. This step can be repeated to prolong the life of your flowers until stems are too short or flowers finally wither.

2. Fresh Water. Be sure to frequently change the water in the vase.

3. Water Level. Keep all foliage above water level to avoid rot. Only stems should be submerged in water. Keep all leaves and flowers above water level.

I purchased the above bouquet at a local farmers' market in mid-September. The last blooms didn't waste away until the first week of November.
These pictures were taken on day 9.