Lend a Hand

Okay, so the Four Month Deployment Drag has set in. And, on the deployment scale of suckage, it ranks around a 7 out of 10. Time has, indeed, become relative and droopy, barely slithering past. Every time you look at the calendar, you swear you see Dali’s The Persistence of Memory painting out of the corner of your eye. You and your love bug have been apart for over 100 days and it can really start to get frustrating. For the deployed members, the “this is new and cool” factor has started to wear thin and the gravity of some of the stuff they’re dealing with has really started to settle on their shoulders. For us Statesiders, the joy of eating nothing but Spaghettios for four weeks straight has also started to become bothersome, as well. Or, maybe it’s just the telling “Freshman Fifteen” that has begun to settle on our hips that causes us to take issue with the stupid military for separating us from our love muffins and chefs.

So…what should we do about it? Instead of bitching and complaining about something we can’t change, and probably something our partners are really enjoying most of the time, why not help someone else out? I just read an article in the Dallas Morning News about a man named Doc Compton who, after receiving some help around Christmas-time for his family a few years ago, decided to pay it forward, one dollar at a time. The article was interesting not because of great sums of money changing hands – after all, what can a dollar do? – but, because of the hope each dollar seemed to instill in the recipient. He put a dollar in each of 100 envelopes with a note that asks the recipient to keep it if they need it, but to add to it and pass it on if they don’t. Some kept it, as a harbinger for better times to come with the plan to add to it when they can, others immediately added what they could and found someone else to pass the envelope to. His hope is for “giving to go viral.” This is my way of trying to help.

What else can we do that doesn’t involve money? How about volunteering your time, skills, or energy for a cause? There are plenty of libraries who would love to have volunteers help with reshelving books or reading to children during Story Hour. I remember from my foray into elementary school teaching that many parents don’t even have five minutes a day to sit down and read to their child. Why not donate an hour or two a week and the dulcet tones of your voice to share a great classic like The Cat in The Hat with kids who would love it, and might just gain a life-long love of reading out of the deal? If you love books, pass it on!


Okay, so you get stage-fright of the highest order just thinking about speaking in front of people…let’s consider doing something that doesn’t really involve a whole lot of interpersonal contact. If you love gardening, like my Mom and Ashley do, and you find yourself at the end of the season faced with The Attack of the Gigantic Herd of Wild Zucchinis, perhaps you can donate some to families in need. Come on, you know when you put three plants in the ground at the beginning of the season, you will end up with a dump truck load of those bright green squash in September just mocking you. When you can hardly bear to look up yet another recipe for Zucchini Bread, Zucchini Casserole, Zucchini au gratin, or Ratatouille…and when your kids catch you grinding up a whole passel of the evil green things to hide in their spaghetti sauce, or hamburgers, or, god-forbid, their pancakes – just step away from the kitchen counter. Hands in the Air! Now, say it with me, “Donate the rest.” Good! You’ll be doing everyone a favor, and your kids will love you for it! And, if you really want to keep the face-to-face contact to just about nil, all you have to do is bring a bag of the three-foot-long mutants to work, sneak into the break room, and leave them there. Artfully arranged, of course! And, they will promptly disappear, taken by people like me who can’t even keep the grass alive. (Thank god the cats let me know periodically to feed them, or that wouldn’t be going nearly so well, either! Yes, Neekie, Mama’s almost done! And, no zucchini in your cat food, I promise. )

If you have more of a black thumb than a green one, maybe there are other skills you can share with people. There are plenty of artists among my readers, some of you are digital scrapbooking whizzes, some of you make really cool silver jewelry, some of you knit or crochet or sew…well, you get the idea. Why not throw an impromptu class at your home for friends, or contact the local art studio or fabric store and offer to teach a class there? They are often looking for instructors. You can share your ideas with a whole new group of people and I guarantee you, you’ll have a great time when the light bulb goes on in your students’ heads and the creativity just shines through them. It can be a pretty big high, let me tell you!

I’m sure you all have other ideas that will help to pass the deployment more quickly. And, never forget, in helping others, we help ourselves. So, let’s get over the Four Month Deployment Drag together and connect with someone. Giving to support a cause is great, and if part of that cause is you…then all the better!

Umm, anybody have any zucchini they want to donate to me? :-)