Happy Sunday, dear friends. As the warm weather has finally arrived, I’ve been out in the garden a lot more, much to my joy! I always adored gardening, and at a young age, I would trudge behind my maternal grandfather, struggling with a large spade, in order to help him dig in the garden.
He was the one who told me, “A girl and her shovel can change the world.” I loved him and I believed him. I felt empowered in the garden, and I found solace from the repetitive daily activities that can be draining.
As I grew and struck out into a wider world, I sometimes felt overwhelmed by just how much change seemed necessary in our world. I felt powerless to invoke all the things that needed to change for everyone to be happy and free.
Then one day, I truly heard someone respond to my lament about the world going to hell in a hand basket. They shrugged and said, “you can only hoe your own row.” Pow! Right between the eyes!
At once, my grandfathers words came back to me strongly. I can change the world. I have the power to create in my own world, which exists right around me, here in my space of love. We each have that power to fill our spaces of love with all the wonderful thoughts, feelings and actions that we want to see in the wider world. This is where transformation starts, first in our hearts and minds, then in our homes and finally out in the world.
So, daily, I plant the seeds of that which I wish to grow. Some of the seeds are physical, like the pumpkins that are sprouting in my garden. Some of the seeds are energetic, like the love of self that I wish for all beings to feel.
I tend both types of seeds with an equal amount of love, because they are both important. I also have as much faith in the growth of the energetic seeds as I do the physical ones. I know the universe supports their growth and joins me in tending them, just like any good gardener.
Trees for the Future.
My dear sister has been supporting Trees for the Future since its inception. The process is simple. Plant trees to reclaim the soil, environment and economic welfare of communities in developing nations. This NGO has a specific formula that they follow called Agroforestry, which has been shown to significantly reclaim desert and degraded land, by creating a new ecosystem in at-risk areas.
I share here the story of Gladys, who is a mother and family caretaker in Kenya. She was going under, trying to support her family through their single dairy cow. Most of her income was going to feeding the cow. Trees for the Future strongly supports women in developing nations, because in many of the cultures in the region, the women are responsible for feeding the family and obtaining fuel for home heating.
With the help of this program, Gladys is converting her farm into a tree farm, which will not only support her family, it will provide food for her cow and economically enhance her community. Reaching out to women in developing nations with proven empowerment projects is the benchmark for transforming our world, and Trees for the Future certainly believe, just like my grandpa, that women and their shovels can change the world.
More Milk, More Money: Gladys’s Story by John Leary for Trees for the Future
A former addict reaches out to those in need, one haircut at a time.
Nasir Sobhani is a Canadian man who was once a cocaine and opiate addict, who had a difficult youth. Thankfully, he was successful in his rehabilitation, and when he was done, his family sat him down and told him he should do what he loved in life.
What he loved is cutting hair. Nasir now lives in Melbourne, Australia, and works in a barber shop 6-days a week. On the seventh day, Nasir takes to the streets and offers free haircuts to homeless people.
Giving back to the community is part of Nasir’s faith, and he says kindness to others is his way of honoring what he believes in. He is able to connect with the humanity of those who are marginalized, because he has been in the shadows himself.
This intimate and loving connection with those who live outside of society, helps them to feel human again. Embracing all as children of a divine universe is the deepest form of love a being can embody, and I honor this man for his service to all.
A nurse brings service and singing together for hospital patients.
As the mother of a young woman who sings constantly and fills our home with blessed song and love through her vocals, this story really hit me. I know how blessed we are to have her beautiful gift uplifting us on a daily basis. In fact, I even know when she is sad without asking, because she ceases singing.
This video shares the story of a young man who is a nurse in a Valencia, CA hospital. He didn’t even realize that he was singing, at first, when doing his rounds to patients, but eventually he caught on to how happy his vocals made the patients feel.
Now he openly shares his love and time with patients, in song, as a gift and honor to them. The reaction of the patients is priceless.
Male Nurse Comforts Elderly Hospital Patients By Singing To Them by Barbara Diamond on Little Things
Thinking outside the box with discarded boxes.
Many rural schools, in developing nations, do not have funding for basic necessities such as desks and chairs. Children are asked to sit for many hours on the floor, and due to limited family income, carry their books and papers in recycled plastic bags.
A local NGO decided to address this issue, with outside the box thinking. They recycled cardboard boxes from industry and created a template to manufacture the Help Desk, which was then distributed to local schools.
The Help Desk is basically a carrying case for books, that unfolds into a functional desk for the kids at school. It gives them a work space to make school more comfortable, as well as a way to carry their work home with them. The cost of these desks is negligible, but the return on investment for these children is immense.
I always adore it when beings address an issue that seems insurmountable, with innovative and sustainable thinking. This type of critical thinking and innovating process is the key to transforming the world, one brilliantly addressed issue at a time.
Help Desk is Helpful on KarmaTube
And finally…
More beautiful acts of kindness caught on video.
We have shared many compilations of beautiful acts of kindness caught on security cameras over the years. Some of the clips in this share are ones we have seen before, but after watching the whole thing and being so moved by the love people can show for other beings, both animal and human, I thought it deserved a place in our good news today.
33 moments that will restore your faith in humanity on YouTube
That’s the good news for today. Have a marvelous day. See you all next Sunday as we explore more good news together.
Be Well. Be Joy. Be Love!
Alex