About a month ago I was shopping at my local WalMart for some party favors for one of my friend's 21st birthday. After deciding between a shot glass on a necklace or a princess crown and sash, I made my way to the check-out line and stood behind a lady who seemed a little flustered with a bunch of little girl clothes in her cart. She offered to let me cut her in line because she knew she was going to take awhile, but I had time to kill and don't like budging so I said I would wait. As she continued to put more tiny leggings and polka-dotted shirts onto the check-out belt, I noticed a Wishing Tree Wants/Needs list in her cart and soon realized she was buying all the clothes for another family for Christmas.
My family has sponsored a Wishing Tree Family in the past, so I started making small talk with her about it while she continued to check-out. She asked me what I was shopping for and I explained (kind of guilty since her purchase was a little more saintly than mine) that I was throwing a surprise 21st birthday party for my friend. I asked her why she was buying her Wishing Tree stuff so early since it was only the second week in November, and she explained that her husband was diagnosed with kidney cancer and she wanted to make sure her Wishing Tree family was taken care of before they went in for more tests and treatments the following week. I was shocked at how somebody who was going through such a rough and unknown time in their life could manage to find time to give back to someone else in need. Towards the end of her transaction she surprised me once again and asked if she could buy my items for me. She said she was young once too and wanted me to enjoy my night out. As I left the store I was still amazed at her random act of kindness and took it as a sign that I was supposed to do something small for someone else this holiday season too.
Fast forward a few days later and I found out I was getting a bonus for work and as a broke college student nothing makes life happier than having money. While I knew I was going to save most of my bonus to pay for books next semester, I decided this was another sign for me to give back to someone worse off than me. My family was already planning on sponsoring another Wishing Tree Family in our community again this winter, but I decided to use part of my bonus to sponsor a family on my own. I spent the next couple weeks scanning Black Friday ads and other deals to get the most out of my budget for my sponsored family. I was able to put my shopping addiction to good use and find a lot of great deals and I also helped my mom find good deals for her sponsored family too. Did I fix these kids' home situation? No. Did I change their lives forever? No. They won't even know who I am or who got them their presents. However I gave them something to open up on Christmas morning, which they may not have been able to do if I hadn't stepped up to play Santa.
I'm not sharing this story to make myself look better than everyone else. I'm sharing this story to show that even broke college kids can give back during the holiday season. Maybe you can't afford to sponsor a family for Christmas, but you can still find time or someone to help out. I had a random act of kindness given to me, and I felt it was God's way of telling me it was time for me to give a random act of kindness to someone else. No matter how bad or hard your life may seem, there is always going to be someone out there who is worse off than you. What may seem like a small gesture, could really leave an impact on someone else and just makes you feel good inside! This holiday season I'm challenging you, no matter who you are or what you are going through, to find a way to get involved in the season of giving. Merry Christmas and God bless you and your family this holiday season.
My family has sponsored a Wishing Tree Family in the past, so I started making small talk with her about it while she continued to check-out. She asked me what I was shopping for and I explained (kind of guilty since her purchase was a little more saintly than mine) that I was throwing a surprise 21st birthday party for my friend. I asked her why she was buying her Wishing Tree stuff so early since it was only the second week in November, and she explained that her husband was diagnosed with kidney cancer and she wanted to make sure her Wishing Tree family was taken care of before they went in for more tests and treatments the following week. I was shocked at how somebody who was going through such a rough and unknown time in their life could manage to find time to give back to someone else in need. Towards the end of her transaction she surprised me once again and asked if she could buy my items for me. She said she was young once too and wanted me to enjoy my night out. As I left the store I was still amazed at her random act of kindness and took it as a sign that I was supposed to do something small for someone else this holiday season too.
Fast forward a few days later and I found out I was getting a bonus for work and as a broke college student nothing makes life happier than having money. While I knew I was going to save most of my bonus to pay for books next semester, I decided this was another sign for me to give back to someone worse off than me. My family was already planning on sponsoring another Wishing Tree Family in our community again this winter, but I decided to use part of my bonus to sponsor a family on my own. I spent the next couple weeks scanning Black Friday ads and other deals to get the most out of my budget for my sponsored family. I was able to put my shopping addiction to good use and find a lot of great deals and I also helped my mom find good deals for her sponsored family too. Did I fix these kids' home situation? No. Did I change their lives forever? No. They won't even know who I am or who got them their presents. However I gave them something to open up on Christmas morning, which they may not have been able to do if I hadn't stepped up to play Santa.
I'm not sharing this story to make myself look better than everyone else. I'm sharing this story to show that even broke college kids can give back during the holiday season. Maybe you can't afford to sponsor a family for Christmas, but you can still find time or someone to help out. I had a random act of kindness given to me, and I felt it was God's way of telling me it was time for me to give a random act of kindness to someone else. No matter how bad or hard your life may seem, there is always going to be someone out there who is worse off than you. What may seem like a small gesture, could really leave an impact on someone else and just makes you feel good inside! This holiday season I'm challenging you, no matter who you are or what you are going through, to find a way to get involved in the season of giving. Merry Christmas and God bless you and your family this holiday season.