mitzvah monday

I went to a street clinic and gave immunizations for several hours to some community members who were happy to have access to them. Preventative health care=wonderful!

There is nothing like a little dose of perspective to make me appreciate my life and all the comforts I enjoy. It was cold out there, and some of the clients were planning to sleep in a shelter.
Whereas I biked home to warm soup and lasagna, hugs, a 68 degree home and a hot bath.

Also, going to see an old and dear friend today and celebrate her new U.S. citizenship. It is always a treat to spend time with her, and she welcomes the chance to use and refine her English as well.

Made chocolate chip muffins (again) for my boys. They will be gone before evening.

Thinking about the life of Dr. King and his courage.

mitzvah monday

mitzvah (noun): a good deed, a charitable or meritorious act
I'm not sure that this week's act is really a mitzvah...
...but I want to think of it that way, rather than arm-twisting monday.

I'm going to loosely define the mitzvah monday concept as something that I did during the week meant to benefit someone or something else. Some contribution to the greater good.

Which then benefits me with warm fuzzy feelings as well.

Bringing me to the concern over this week.

I signed up to be team captain for a citywide commuter challenge at my worksite. The idea is to promote alternate transportation, anything other than solo driving, for civic and environmental reasons. Of course active transport has great health benefits too (plus it's fun).

I received a nifty blue t-shirt, some incentive coupons to give out for chocolate and bike flat fixes, free day passes to distribute to colleagues for the bus, a calender of special events for the week, a bus schedule, and a map of all the local bike trails and best streets for walker-bikers.

It turns out that most of my (wonderful!) coworkers have pretty complicated lives. Many of them juggle more than one job, or go to school, or have children who need to be dropped off various places. They are rushing all over town, and don't have a lot of extra time for this challenge--and it does take extra time to bike, bus, walk, or coordinate schedules with someone else.

They have all graciously listened to me, and entertained the notion of trying to get to work in a different manner if possible, and I helped one person figure out which buses she could take and another to brainstorm how to make the rapid transit work with her schedule.

 But I feel a bit like the zealous convert that everyone inwardly groans at (I saw the look in one coworker's eye that I know I get when someone asks me if I know Jesus).

Still, it is a mitzvah! Everyone needs to know...ahem...discover the joys of biking to work!

Right?

It's a continual process, this learning that we are all so different in values and beliefs. And daily lives!

mitzvah monday

mitzvah (noun): a good deed, a charitable or meritorious act

Today's mitzvah is courtesy of one of the p'tit minous, who decided to go through his bookshelf and find 10 picture books that weren't special young-childhood favorites (of either himself or his brother) to donate to the day shelter for homeless families.

mitzvah monday

mitzvah (noun): a good deed, a charitable or meritorious act

This week's mitzvah is very, very, important to me...

...it's an investment in the future. Can you guess what it is?

A big, fat check to the local school district education fund, targeting my boys' two schools.
Not as fat as I would like (someday, if I play and win the lottery, here's where it will go)
but as much as we can right now--a month's grocery budget.
Keeping class sizes small (er) and all the innovative programs in place.

I feel lucky to live where my kids have benefited from a K-12 public French immersion program,
electives like art, music, and P.E., and really good teachers.
They will be able to take advanced placement classes and complete the International Baccalaureat.
I wish all kids had those opportunities.
Check out this short NYTimes article about why kindergarten teachers should be paid triple digits! (oops--I actually meant in the thousands, that is SIX DIGIT SALARIES!)
Thankfully I can feel like my donation directly helps both my p'tit minous and many other p'tit minous.

mitzvah monday

mitzvah (noun): a good deed, a charitable or meritorious act
This week I felt happy about sharing their fresh eggs...

...with friends and neighbors.

Thank you, Ladies.

mitzvah monday

mitzvah (noun): a good deed, a charitable or meritorious act

I went to donate blood on Saturday--something that always makes me feel good. My blood type is relatively rare, so I wait to get that call from the blood center requesting it, and then I hurry down there. Did you know that while about 37% of the U.S. population is eligible to donate blood, only about 10% do so?

However...my hemoglobin was just ever so slightly too low to give up a pint of blood, so I went for a nice long run, had several iron-rich meals with vitamin C foods, and am going back today. Fingers crossed.