Returning to "Normal"

We have been away from our home in South Arington for a bit over 2 months.  Time away is precious and honestly, hard to come by.  But I have come to realize the importance of it for rejuvenation and self-care.  And also - to give us space and time to get work done. 

 

Since we have been out of town, we have completed sooooo much Kindness Activist WORK!  Like, the behind-the-scenes things that take a ton of time and are hard to do at home.  Scheduling, calculating, writing – all of the things.  Because you see, when I am in South Arlington, I am SPREADING KINDNESS!  I just love to do, do, do – and I get so caught up in the doing that sometimes the organizing and details can fall behind.  So, this time away has been good for checking many, many Kindness Activist things off the to-do list.

 

But, like all escapes from reality for the last 3 ½ years, it was hard to sneak away.  You see, ever since the Little Yellow Free Pantry was established, we can’t just leave town on a moment’s notice.  No – we need to put a plan in place before we can go out of town.  Because food insecurity is REAL, and people know that the LYFP is a safe, non-judgmental place to come get what they need.  But if we skip town without a plan, then that resource disappears for the guests.

 

Enter….  THE PANTRY CREW!  They are the hard-working group of amazing adults and kids who pitch in and keep everything afloat while we are gone.  They bring donations inside our home into the storage area.  They unbox and organize them.  They sort everything.  They let me know what we are running low on. They fill the pantry.  And they assist guests when they see them.  It is a big ask – they volunteer their time and muscles – and we really appreciate it.  Thank you, Pantry Crew!!

 

Well, my partner David went home today.  I will be back in Arlington in a few days, but he went home today to start the semester teaching.  And he had not been home more than an hour or two when the doorbell rang.

 

Now, that is not surprising really.  Guests ring the bell to see if we have something they might need, donors ring the bell to drop things off, and sometimes people just come up to the door to say hello or, “WHAT IS THIS PLACE – A SHOP?  AN OFFICE?  A HOUSE???”.

 

So today, very shortly after David got home (before he was even settled in), the bell rang.  He answered it and got to meet some new people.  He texted me this:

 

“...aaaaaand we're back in the game...I was working on the Kindness Activist forms, and someone came to the door.  It was a guy who is driving a lady in a wheelchair around, trying to find the Little Free Pantry that she heard about when she was looking online for places to get food. She is a former secretary for the Navy, now retired.  She has breast cancer, and her retirement pay has ended.  So, she's having trouble making ends meet between Social Security checks.”

 

Let that sink in.

 

She is retired.

Has cancer.

And is Googling places to get food to help her get enough food to eat between Social Security checks.

 

Breaks my heart.

 

David sat out on the front steps and chatted with her.  She held a big umbrella to shade the sun, which can be especially harsh when you are on chemo.  David took the woman and the driver around to the side of the house and showed them the pantry.  He took her bag inside and returned it to her filled with food.  She was hoping for milk, but he explained that because he just got back there were no perishables yet.

 

She is going to come back another day.  I am looking forward to meeting her.  I will pass along some other resources that the community offers in case she is unaware of them and not signed up for them yet. 

 

But mostly - I hope to get time to sit down and talk with her.  Listen to her story, encourage her with her cancer treatment.  I don’t know for sure, but I am guessing that she does not have friends or family to help out.  I mean, if she did, I would hope they would be delivering meals or groceries now as she is in a fragile spot both medically and financially.

 

So yes, food insecurity is real.  And it can happen to anyone.  If this woman isn’t an example of that, I don’t know what is.

 

Because everyone deserves good food. 

 

P.S. – the faces in the photo are blurred (it’s not your eyes, it is the photo 😊 )

 

P.P.S. – if you would like to pitch in items for the Little Yellow Free Pantry, our wish list of needed items can be found here:  Kindness Activist Wish List