The milk of human kindness

This afternoon I went to a fundraising event organised by a Facegroup group called Mums in Durham. The event had been organised to help a local mother-of-four young children who is terminally ill with cancer (with only weeks to live) and who had a house fire not long ago, leaving her homeless.

This awful situation is unimaginable to most of us, and something we would hope never to have to face. When we hear of terrible things happening, and there are sadly so many reported in the media on a daily basis, it can evoke a sense of helplessness in us; we know that other people are suffering in so many ways, but often their situation feels too far away from us to do something about, or there seems too much suffering to know where to start with helping to alleviate it.

This afternoon's event was a reminder that there are things that we can do to help, and great things are often achieved as the result of lots of individuals coming together to do their bit, however small it may seem. Today was a result of a group of local mums who had heard about Dawn's story and thought "yes, we can do something to help". They couldn't take away what was happening to her, but they could let Dawn know that she wasn't alone in her time of need, and that many others cared about what was happening to her.

The event took only six days to organise, and this was detailed on the Mums in Durham page. It was humbling to see how many people were getting involved; organisations had offered to help, either free of charge or for a much-reduced rate, and people gave of their time freely and offered to help set up and run stalls. Through Mums in Durham, other Facebook pages heard of Dawn's story and donated.

When I went along this afternoon, the church hall was packed. The building was buzzing with helpers, organisers and with all those who had come along to support Dawn and her family, many of whom had not met her, but who felt compassion for her and wanted to help in some way.

I came away having bought four cakes and donated a small sum of money to a collection. I looked at the cakes and thought of my contribution and didn't feel that I had done very much. I later discovered that the whole event had raised over £1500 which was a fantastic sum. My part might not have been very big in that, but it was a part, and this had made a difference.

Dawn has apparently been overwhelmed by the response. One of the admin members of the Facebook group said that Dawn had said to her that she felt surrounded by love and support and that this had really helped her to cope with what is happening in her life.

We can't do everything, but we can do something, and our part does matter and does make a difference.

What can we learn from daffodils?

This morning, my friend Lorna and I went to a nursing home near Consett. Every first Friday of the month, we visit to administer Holy Communion to those who can't get to church. It is such a privilege to do this and to be a part of the lives of those whom we visit.

During our visit today, we got around to talking to one of the ladies we visit about flowers, most notably daffodils. Dorothy had been given a bunch as a gift and said that there was much to be learnt from them. Intrigued, I asked her to tell us more. Dorothy explained that when she looks at the flowers, she appreciates their beauty which is all the more to her because it is fleeting; there is simplicity and beauty in the flowers themselves, but also because they do not last for long: through their existence we are reminded of the passing of time; of seasons and the present.

There is a lesson to be learnt from this. We often spend so much time either looking back at the past or looking forward to the future and perhaps not focussing on the beauty of what is in front of us as much as we should.

Noticing and appreciating the beauty of things around us can be a source of real pleasure in life, but it can be so hard to do when life is hectic and stresses and strains take over. Often, if I am feeling overwhelmed by jobs I need to do, I do not spend enough time looking for the beauty in things as they are then, in that moment; this applies to every part of life: to family, to friendships and to work. One of my favourite books is Angela Ashwin's "Heaven in Ordinary"; Angela encourages us to take a similar approach to prayer and not to feel that one has to confine oneself to pray in certain ways or at certain times. Time to pray, to thank God for his beautiful world, can be found in the ordinary, everyday moments of life as well as the extraordinary.

I am going to try and do this more; to see the beauty in everything in the moments that pass minute-by-minute, day-by-day and to thank God for them. I think that I shall start by opening my eyes a little more.

Thank you, Dorothy.

Starting a blog!

I'm not sure entirely where to start with blogging, but I am very excited to be starting my own blog at last! A couple of people have suggested that I might enjoy it and I thought I would give it a go!