Care Packages

My children liked to receive care packages when they were young and away at camp. That didn't change when they got to college and beyond. My youngest is asking me to send her stuff at college and telling me about the care packages her friend has received. She is using her persuasive powers of guilt. Her friend has nice parents who understand fully what the offspring need. I have always been a more random parent, sending something when the idea struck me or when one called to say they needed something yesterday. Bad Mommy. Truth be told, we all need care packages from time to time. Reminders that others are thinking about us and reaching out to us in some small way when we are far off, can be very life giving. Just when we have given up hope, or just when things seems too enormous to tackle, a little care package, a phone call, a gesture of some sort, gives us the encouragement to go on. A small token can often act as a blanket of calm on rough seas in our lives. A sign of response and activity is often all it takes to ignite the waning courage and hope."He got up, rebuked the wind and the raging waters; the storm subsided and all was calm."(Luke 8:24)

Today, maybe we can each take time to send someone a care package, or simply pick up the phone. I suspect there are many people out there who need a spark of encouragement today and they are as likely as not to be our neighbors, family members and friends. AS we approach the seventh anniversary of 9/11, we are all weary from the harsh changes we have seen in our world and the distance that has come between people. Today, I want to be an instrument of God's presence in life of someone else.A sign of love's activity, reaching out across time and space. Nothing fancy, just love made visible for another.