On her way out of town for the holidays, my wife texted me with a message that restored my faith in humanity. It was a request, not from her, but from or about a neighbor. We don’t really know her all that well. The woman, who lives alone, had recently undergone surgery and would be incapacitated for 4 months. Her daughter reached out to our community Facebook page with a link to a website that I thought was brilliant – Meal Train. It enables someone to connect to a community of friends to advise of a situation and to request meals for someone in need. All the organizational issues are handled by the site – scheduling, dietary restrictions, preferences, open dates, etc. It even has links to Grub Hub, Door Dash and Uber Eats where you can prepay an option or send a gift card if you are not available to cook or just prefer not to. You can forward the link to others and invite them to participate. There are suggestions for etiquette, tips and ideas for meal giving; all the little things to make it more convenient for the recipients. [PLEASE CLICK ON THE TITLE ABOVE TO CONTINUE READING]
|
I signed up immediately to cook a meal for the next available slot. I was surprised at how good it felt to be doing this. I packaged up my meal, delivered it in the timeframe expected and left it on the porch where instructed. As I walked away I heard a simple “thank you” from the Ring Doorbell, which likely announced my arrival as I stepped upon the porch. The next day I walked by and my washed containers were on the porch. I picked them up and walked home, still feeling very good at the entire experience and marveling at the simplicity and genuine value this service provided. When I got home, I noticed there was an envelope in the bag with a hand-written thank-you card. In today’s highly digital world with the circumstances set up and so conveniently arranged by an on-line platform, it was refreshing to get this note. I smiled as I read it: “Thank you so much for the lovely meal. That was very kind of you”. And it was signed. Handwritten thank you notes are now more powerful than ever, likely because they are rare, unexpected and genuinely appreciated. From a recent New York Times article: “A handwritten thank-you note isn’t just a time-honored art. It’s an act of thoughtfulness that makes our society a better place by encouraging a spirit of generosity and appreciation. It can even be a gift itself.” Having just experienced receiving such a note, I can attest to these sentiments. My mother often told me “it’s never too late to send a thank-you note”. She’s right, of course, and there are many that I have written by starting with her quote feeling guilty that it had taken me so long for an acknowledgement. A cherished friend of mine still has note cards with his name embossed on the top sitting on a table with a pen, envelopes and stamps at the ready. He walks by the table often and when he does the thought is triggered – is there someone to whom I should be sending a handwritten note of thanks? For him, it's never an after-thought. These influences impacted me. I keep a few thank-you notes in my brief case at all times with some stamps. I have sent them often while on the road for kindnesses bestowed. I feel like it’s the right thing to do. Hear that, mom? Maybe it’s just getting caught up in the holiday spirit, but feeling the way I did upon receiving the note from my neighbor justifies to me that it’s worth sending thank-you notes. Thank you... to Meal Train and to my neighbor. |