Have I mentioned that I love my life? I think it may have come up a time or two. These days I feel like I hit the ground running every morning at 6:15am and do not slow down until I collapse onto my bed at 11pm. There are never enough hours in the day, and no matter how fast I go, there are still things left undone at the end of the day. But you know what? I love it this way. There is never a moment to be bored. Never a moment to feel as if I am not accomplishing anything. No time to feel as if I am wasting my life.
Today is Firefighter Wednesday. My tag for my wednesday training days. Last week was the epic experience of gearing up and riding in a firetruck, today will be more of the same. Last week as I stood in an open field talking with my new "family", watching the trucks rolling, practicing maneuvers, I had a feeling of having arrived home. I felt as if I belonged with this group. As is my nature to Never Do Anything By Halves, and with the encouraging words of these devoted volunteers, I began formulating the idea that I would really like to take this as far as I can. I will take every course offered, take every advantage to train, become skilled in saving lives and property. It is an adventure that will have an exponentially huge payback for me. I have enjoyed my previous volunteer activities, whether it is fostering homeless dogs or donating blood, it gives a great sense of satisfaction to be able to do what little I can to improve the world around me. Firefighting is, in my humble opinion, a heroic endeavor. Firefighters put their lives on the line for strangers. This is not why I joined, being a "hero" is not on my lifetime To-Do List. I joined so that I can give back to my community, make my corner of the world just a little bit better. If each of us took a few hours out of our busy week to make small improvements in the world around us, then the world would truly become a Better Place. Yes, there are giants to be slain, but there are also seeds of kindness to be planted. And which has the potential for greater results? I believe in the seeds of kindness. The helping hand, the warmth of a smile, a loving gesture. I believe in protecting the helpless, the sanctity of life, the power of love. Yes, I am an Idealist. But I am also a pragmatist, I understand the reality around me. I see the ramifications of carelessness, anger, hatred, sloth, and the devastation caused by those who simply turn their back and ignore those in need.
I feel it is time for the good people to step it up a notch. Yes, there are those who are driven to fight the good fight, be in the trenches devoting their lives to worthy causes. But the pragmatist in me knows that this is an impossible expectation for most of us. But if we devote our lives to being Good and Kind, helping when we can, taking a few hours now and then to lend a hand, be kind to a stranger, mentor a child, take in a stray, put a few cans of soup in the donation bin, buy local, help within your own neighborhood or community. The little acts, the tiny seeds of kindness, are as individual drops of rain, which can truly become a flood if there are enough of them. We need to be a drop of rain, a light shower. We do not need to be the flood all on our own. But little by little, every drop counting, we can begin to quench the drought that seems to have fallen upon our land. I want to make the world a better place, even if it is just my tiny corner.
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