Weekly Top 5

How was your week, friend?

With almost daily changes in local, state, and federal direction on our personal movement, our world is awash in uncertainty. Many of you are settling into a routine of co-teleworking, homeschooling, cooking, cleaning, and (fingers crossed!) some outdoor activity. I’m hopeful in the tougher moments that you are able to find enclaves of peace, or at the very least, some levity through online dance-offs.

For me, I find myself processing it all in waves. Sometimes, I can’t turn away from the news, trying to be informed while sitting in disbelief. Others, I force myself to distance, grateful that I live in a place where I can still get outside and recreate in the fresh air.

Still other times (and they come more and more often), I find myself in the same position as last week’s post…searching for the good, and finding much of it. Ingenuity. Kindness. Giving. Snarky, wonderful, inside-joke humor that I hope we’ll all look back on and nod with in solidarity.

In today’s post, I’ll highlight the good. As I mentioned when we launched this thing, it was started in large part as a dedication to an incredible human being, and in honoring that, I hoped it would alkalize the “overabundance of negative shit” out there. While I’m in no way downplaying the magnitude of things right now, I’d like this place to be a breather for you—a pause and reminder of what is good in you, and what is good in all of us, and that all of those things still matter…in fact, they couldn’t matter more.

So…here’s a top five of some of the acts of kindness from where I sat this week, and I hope they’ll make you smile, too.

No. 1: Ingenuity. Because…America. This is bald eagle brilliance, my friends. Everyone who has a sewing machine is using their untapped potential in the #100MillionMaskChallenge. 3D printer aficionados also assumed their part in the action, perfecting prototypes and then sending creation and assembly instructions to their fellow 100-pound brain technicians, providing much-needed relief to healthcare workers. When it takes too long to get production lines rolling, individuals stepped in and said, “Hold my beer.” Video link here, and thank you, sweet, innovative people. While at it, this distillery said, “hold my glass” and made hand sanitizer in lieu of booze.

No. 2: Time. Most restaurants converted to takeaway, both to stay afloat and keep their employees employed. Yoga and fitness studios like this one converted overnight to live stream, providing much-needed wellness, community, and routine while also attempting to keep themselves and their instructors afloat. Not everyone has been able to stay open, though, and this guy is making one heck of a lemonade out of lemons, lending his voice and magnificent beard to children’s books that he’s reading online while his coffee shop is on hiatus. Thank you, kind sir.

No. 3: Ridiculous Hilarity. I have no words for this, except if you need a good laugh, turn off the news and watch the ingenuity that arrives out of boredom.

No. 4: Community Building: I’m seeing the beautiful parts of social media…while I normally have a love-hate relationship with technology, personally, I’m blown away by its use for good right now. Locally, I’ve seen individuals establish groups to post needs from volunteer organizations, food banks, services for the elderly, and disseminating helpful information at the local level. It’s been accurate, kind, and non-confrontational with the sole purpose of helping one another. Thank you, social media, for showing me this gift and your beautiful bright spots.

No. 5: Music. Musicians (amateur and professional alike)—thank you for expressing emotions which often transcend words. Many musicians are out of work these days, and yet, they’re taking the many hours of rehearsal and putting their talents out in the world anyway, providing us all with beautiful respite. I’ve seen live concerts offered on Friday nights where gigs were once slated…and I’ve seen the impromptu ones, too, like this one off a balcony in Spain. So as I close this list, I’ll leave you with this reminder of who we are, what we are made of, and the kindness we can dig in and find, even in the toughest of times.

Wishing all of you many moments of peace, acts of kindness, toughness when you need it, some fresh air, and community in the most creative of ways. I hope this list inspires you, too, to take a small, empowering act of kindness every day. I wish you health, safety, and well-being, especially healthcare workers. Take care, friends.

xo,

Cami

PS–would love to hear about what you saw this week. Feel free to contribute in the comments below!