The Garys Are Back From Guatemala

The Gary Family has returned this past Sunday, August 2nd from Guatemala. I spoke briefly to Shelli Gary and she said the trip was fantastic! So many happy people, happy faces receiving much needed eyeglasses/sunglasses/and drug store reading glasses. I am currently awaiting a full report from Shelli informing us in detail, along with a flicker page of photos of their fabulous trip. Thanks to you and all who were so kind and generous with donations, we could not possibly be happier…except of course for the folks in Guatemala who are thrilled to have their lives changed by being able to see clearly! Awesome job and once again we are going to be posting additional information about the Gary family’s trip! God Bless All!

Handing Out Eyeglasses In Guatemala

The Gary Family is now in Guatemala assisting in dispensing the 1,730 pair of Prescription Eyeglasses collected by Be Kind to Humankind (BK2HK) and other sources here in the U.S. Shelli Gary estimates that BK2HK collected over 1,500 pair! Be Kind to Humankind (BK2HK) has helped to triple the amount of eyeglasses brought to Guatemala this summer. Last summer the Garys brought over an estimated 500 pair! Be Kind to Humankind (BK2HK) give’s much thanks to all of those who participated in helping to change people’s lives for the better in Guatemala! Within the next two weeks we will be posting the Gary’s return trip home with a new Flickr Page of photos, their story about their trip, and a detailed list of all whom have helped to make this possible!

A Prose Writing By Shawn McWilliams

Shadow of an Angel

I prayed a prayer for him; my soldier, it was the beginning of many. I was scared for him going to Baghdad he is my baby, my little boy. It’s hard for me to even describe him, he’s the definition of so many thousands already there. Thousands already gone; he’s my blood, my first born, my precious, my handsome little boy, my little troublemaker, my little guy, my spitting image, the Father of my Grandson, my gift from heaven, a gift from the Lord. And I remember the very moment of his birth, his first day of school, his gift of art, the beauty of his eyes and his desire to be different. This first night I cried out to the heavens before he left and the Almighty gave me a vision.

Looking down from high above on the large city of Baghdad at night I saw a small ball of orange light arch from one point to the next, and then another, and another, and another until the sky above was full of them flying to and fro. I realized that these orange flashes were angels doing the work of the Almighty, yielding to the cry of loved ones from Michigan and Ohio, Florida and Maine, California and Texas. The heartfelt cries of brothers and sister’s Mom’s and Dad’s to bring their loved ones home, let them live, let no harm come to them.

The revelation came to me that God is doing his best to answer the mournful cry of so many in a land where at times there appears to be no sign of God at all. My son comes home next week after a year serving a country founded In God we trust. At night I’ll look toward the heavens and seek a shadow of an angel and praise the Almighty for the gift and the life of my soldier; my son

Shawn McWilliams

Write your Troubles

Write your troubles in the sand and your blessings in stone.
Anonymous

Summer’s Here…Volunteer

The American Red Cross is in crucial need of blood. By giving one pint of blood you literally save many lives. I recently gave blood, and am now signing up to be a regular donor. I have Universal Blood, which is RH-Negative blood. It is in very high demand as we can give our blood to everyone, yet we must receive only our type of blood should we ever need it.

Regardless of whether or not you are RH-Negative or any other blood type, The American Red Cross in your area would greatly appreciate your donation. In giving blood we help others. So simple, yet so very important! Also, did you know that 1 pint of blood equals loosing 1 pound? When the nurse told me that, I asked her if she could take out 9 more pints! They laughed and told me there is actually 1 pint of blood per every 10 lbs. of body weight per person. Interesting.

So please take the time, an hour at the most to give blood. Just go to givelife.org to find out where and when they are sponsoring a drive in your town. Thanks so much for giving the gift of life!

redcross.org/donate/give
givelife.org
Donor Eligibility Guidelines

Martin Buxbaum

A couple of years ago I posted a poem written by Martin Buxbaum. His poem is featured on a beautiful poster. The poster consists of one women in 3 separate stages of her life…one as a young girl, then a young woman and finally an old woman. The poem written by Martin Buxbaum on the poster is as follows:

“Some people, No matter how old they get, Never lose their beauty. They merely move it from their faces, into their hearts.” – Martin Buxbaum

I have seen the sea, when it is stormy, and wild; when it is quiet, and serene’, when it is dark, and moody. And in all its moods I have seen myself. – Martin Buxbaum

Below is the poster and under the poster is information about Mr. Buxbaum and his daughter Kate Buxbaum Prado. To my delight and surprise, Kate had contacted me recently. Read what Kate shared with us about our posting of her dad’s poetry. Thanks so much Kate for sharing your dad’s work with us, and for sharing your work with us as well! It’s beautiful!

Kate Buxbaum Prado writes:

My dad has been gone since 1991 and I miss him every day. He had a full life and gave much to others, and continues to give, even though he is not here. This is the same desire I have for my work. I wish I knew who was the artist that did the work with my father’s verse on beauty. It has been on the Internet for ages and nobody seems to know.

Visit www.pradospen.com and go to Prado’s Picks to view additional photo’s of Martin Buxbaum along with his poetry and that of his daughter’s.

My Father

When I was small, my father traveled, and then he would, come home. But even when, he went away, we never felt alone. We did not have, to see him, to know how much, he cared. He would always, be our father, and his love was always there.- Kate Prado

“I will never leave thee nor forsake thee.” Hebrews 13:5

What Will You Leave Behind? It is not just only the rich and famous who will leave a legacy, but every man, woman and child ever born, no matter who they are. Our society has become so fixated on the lives of movie stars, those in the news and the people on reality television, to where the importance of the seemingly unimportant goes unnoticed. As students graduate and head out into the world, do they carry with them the knowledge of how the life they live and the choices they make, have the potential to change a nation,or possibly change an entire world? It is up to each one of us as parents, teachers, family or friends of children of any age, to send the right message. A young man sat in the office of his guidance counselor before graduating from high school. His eye was black from having gotten into another fight. The adviser was serious when he told the student he was very smart, but it was now up to him as to where he would be in the future. Today that young man is grown. He became a very successful businessman, is a good father, a wonderful husband and gives back so much into the world around him. Did the words spoken to him by the concerned counselor change his destiny? I believe they may have. My own father wrote, “Leave more for others to follow than footprints in the water.” These few simple words have stayed with me throughout my own life as I ask myself the question, “What will you leave behind?”

Kindness

Kindness planted in the soil, of another with a need, will one day blossom, back to you, a product of, this spirit seed. – Kate Prado

“Give and it, shall be given unto you…” Luke 6:38

Be sure to visit scrapbook.com to view Kate’s creations (listed under “KatesCreations”).

A Thousand Words Will Not Leave So Deep An Impression

“A thousand words will not leave so deep an impression as one deed.” Henrik Ibsen

Image source

Let Not Kindness And Fidelity Leave You

Let not Kindness and fidelity leave you. Bind them around your neck. Then will you win favor and good esteem before God and man!

Proverbs:Chapter 3 verses 3&4 New American Bible

We Honor our Fallen Soldiers. Send a Free Post Card to Our Soldiers Overseas!

If you go to letssaythanks.com you can pick out a thank you card and Xerox will print it and it will be sent to a soldier that is currently serving in Iraq. You can’t pick out who gets it, but it will go to some member of the armed services.

How amazing it would be if we could get everyone we know to send one!!! This is a great site. Please send a card. It is free and it only takes a second.

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if the soldiers received a bunch of these? Whether you are for or against the war, our guys and gals over there need to know we are behind them.

DoOneNiceThing.com Has a New Book Out…Check it out!!!

Do One Nice Thing is a wonderful web site which features all types of kind acts and ways to get involved in helping others without spending a fortune. In fact, being kind and helpful to others is usually FREE (holding a door for someone, sharing a smile or a kind word, and just plain being polite and considerate!) Debbie Tenzer, creator of DoOneNiceThing and author of this fab book with the same fab title also suggests many other groovy ideas on how we can improve our little corner of the world one person at a time!!!

To order this book and view Debbie’s video please visit the link provided!
Order Book here

Remember, being kind is FREE and meant to be shared with others. Just imagine (as John Lennon once sang) what a wonderful world this could be if all of us followed this simple philosophy!