Humble Heart

There is a song called "Little Things" by JJ Heller and every time I hear it I start tearing up. The lyrics go:

There are not enough minutes in the day
I am crippled by the thought of wasting time
I don’t have enough money to heal the poor
So I don’t want to try

But it’s the little things that make a difference
It’s the little things that show love
It’s the little things
A simple cup of water that can change the world
That can save our sons and daughters

I’ll be praying for the widow all alone
Sewing clothes for a loaf of bread
It is not my fault that she is hungry
It’s my joy to make sure she’s fed

We are all related, children of the King
We may not have much, but what we have we bring

So my Biology teacher is being incredibly generous and offering extra credit for donating blood. I was talking to a class mate about it and mentioned how I didn't think I could because I get nauseous and hyperventilate when anyone sticks me with any needles.

Natalie said, "Yeah. I use to not donate either for the same reason. But I changed my mind 6 years ago when I was in a bad accident. I ended up in the hospital in a coma and needed several blood transfusions. I actually had to be in a wheel chair for like a month and slowly do physical therapy to regain my ability to move."

My jaw just dropped. Natalie looks like a healthy, extremely skinny, young woman who couldn't have a care in the world. Holy crap was my judgment 180 degrees off.

I felt like such an asshole after this and she really got me thinking about how selfish I had been about donating blood. Common, I can handle a little needle prick.

Ok, so the needle prick isn't what gets me. I started walking up to the donation bus today on campus and started getting a sick feeling in my stomach. However, I refused to back down. I could do this once. I think secretly I was hoping to get out of it by not having a high enough iron or something.

Nope, everything was fine and they set me up to draw blood. The second he pricked that needle into me (which doesn't hurt at all, btw) I started bawling. Couldn't help it. I just lost my self composure. Poor guy thought he had hurt me. But apparently, I "flow like a sieve" as he put it. They were all giddy at the fact that my blood flowed so generously.

10 minutes later I was done and introduced to Adele. In 1942 she was working in the State Auditors office, and her boss came around and picked 5 people and told them to follow him. So she did, nervously, and he led them to the American Legion Auxiliary office to give blood. She said that was first time she donated and did it ever since. Sweet thing gave me juice and a home made cookie and told us her stories. What a wonderful woman.

So I left the donation bus and got on the bus headed for home; feeling really good about myself. The next stop an injured Afghanistan veteran got on; leg in a brace and in crutches. My iPod was on at the moment and noticed he was talking to me. Took them out and asked him to repeat what he said.

"I just wanted to say hi to you," he said with the biggest smile. Just touched my heart.

Another woman got on the bus who looked like she needed a seat. So I got up and she sat down. Immediately, the vet got up on his crutches and asked the woman next to him to move her bag so he could sit there and I could sit down in his seat. I was blown away.

"I couldn't let you give up your seat, without giving up mine, " he said.

As he said that a little boy sitting across from us started asking his mom about the vet's leg. She started explaining how he was in the war and hurt his leg there. The vet started talking to the little boy about how he was in the Army and how he was ok with hurting his leg because he was helping other little boys like him. I was bawling at this point and trying my hardest to not have anyone notice.

The vet turned to me and said, "I'm just a sucker for little kids" with the same huge smile as when he said hi.

I had to get off the bus. I was in full tears at that point.

I fully believe God was telling me in that moment that it wasn't about me. Donating is never about you and how you feel after. Donating is about the vet, about the kid, and about Natalie. Donating is about the people in Haiti and the people who need it.  

So, Lord, please take my humbling experience as my acknowledgment of your love, compassion, and influence of today. I pray I can be more like You as the days pass and that my heart can be humbled to open it even more. In Your gracious name, I pray. Amen.


But it’s the little things that make a difference
It’s the little things that show love
It’s the little things
A simple cup of water that can change the world
That can save our sons and daughters

Family

What makes family, family? Who is to be considered family and who do we categorize as friends, acquaintances, co-workers, etc...?

Yesterday I had a relative tell me I "need to make a point of going up to visit" my relatives on my dad's side of the family. "There needs to be a family picnic - to reconnect and have fun." At that point I stopped him with my retort, "But we don't like each other."

Seriously though, this whole idea of family has been constantly present this last year. Whom should I consider family, whom should I consider a relative, and whom should I not give a damn about at all? Is family those who are genetically linked to me? Is family those I love dearly?

Websters Dictionary defines family as,

1 : a group of individuals living under one roof and usually under one head : household
2 a : a group of persons of common ancestry : clan
   b : a people or group of peoples regarded as deriving from a common stock : race
3 a : a group of people united by certain convictions or a common affiliation : fellowship
   b : the staff of a high official (as the President)
4 : a group of things related by common characteristics: as  

   a : a closely related series of elements or chemical compounds  

   b : a group of soils with similar chemical and physical properties (as texture, pH, and mineral content) that comprise a category ranking above the series and below the subgroup in soil classification c : a group of related languages descended from a single ancestral language
5 a : the basic unit in society traditionally consisting of two parents rearing their children; also : any of various social units differing from but regarded as equivalent to the traditional family  

   b : spouse and children
6 a : a group of related plants or animals forming a category ranking above a genus and below an order and usually comprising several to many genera  

   b in livestock breeding (1) : the descendants or line of a particular individual especially of some outstanding female (2) : an identifiable strain within a breed
7 : a set of curves or surfaces whose equations differ only in parameters
8 : a unit of a crime syndicate (as the Mafia) operating within a geographic area

With so many definitions, how can one accurately label family? 

Was Euripides correct when he said, "Blood's thicker than water, and when one's in trouble, Best to seek out a relative's open arms"? (Andromache 1. 985,  425 BCE)


Or is Pope John XXIII wiser when he said, "The whole world is my family"? (Journal of a Soul, 1964)


I'm starting to understand that family is who you love and reciprocates that love. Family are those wonderful souls whom you stumble across in life that you can't live without. Relatives have a genetic connection, but family has an emotional connection.