When you're down and troubled, and you need a helping hand...

There are days when we all wish our worries would be swept away.  Unpaid bills due, a  teen with poor final grades, the air conditioner that needs repair, maybe the car is making a strange noise and nothing seems to come easily.  Then the winds of change come roaring through.  We watch in horror as communities in Oklahoma are shattered.  Families have been torn apart losing what is most precious.  The fortunate ones rush to the rescue and we feel a wave of gratitude to be living anywhere else with families intact.  We realize that success and security are illusory.  Forces much more powerful can shatter those illusions with random selection.  If we are most fortunate, we receive those lessons by observing the tragedy of others.

  Is complacency a luxury we can really afford?  What would you remedy today if you knew tomorrow would be tragic?  Could you drop a grudge, leave an unkind word unsaid, remember to hug someone who leaves laundry on the floor?  Could you stop worrying about what really isn't important?  Can you revel in happiness for having enough instead of having it all?   Today, most of us can be grateful and count our blessings.  We can restore peaceful relationships because it is not too late.  We can shift our priories and wake up with joy.  We can build community by reaching out to neighbors, knowing the little kids on the block and their pet's names and pray that they never need rescue from a gunman or a collapsed school.  We can contribute something to a rescue organization that rushes to emergencies.  Maybe even take a course in first aid that we have put off for years.  

Let's not forget the power of prayer.  Whether you have a faith in God, or put your faith in man, there is tremendous power and energy in unified thoughts of gratitude, peace, compassion and consolation.  The collective wisdom and intentional wave of focus on solutions, strength and courage benefit us by fostering human connection without prejudice.

May today bring you peace, perspective and inspiration to create the changes you want to see in your world.  May the people of Oklahoma feel our support in a real and powerful way.