Kindness at the end of a Big Black Boot

I just did the most foolish thing--I wrote an entire piece on this blog and neglected to save my work.  There's something about this setup that fools me me into believing my work exists on its own, but it doesn't--it must be SAVED!

I wrote about the Big Black Boot I wore for several months after taking a nasty fall on a puddle of water December 6.  My life changed in that moment, and I learned about pain and endurance instead of partying, telling delightful Christmas stories and enjoying holiday delicacies with my family. Fortunately for me, this was the year my children were coming to me in the mountains of East Tennessee, but until they arrived, my neighbor and good friend, Jim, took over, nursing me, keeping the apartment from falling into a total shambles, and taking me to the doctor. I will never forget his kindness.

Kristy flew in from Tallahassee and hit the ground running.  She knew I was mortified by my apartment and wanted it clean and decorated for the holidays, so by the time Kitty and Ron and the grandchildren arrived, all was neat, clean and ready. Then Kitty did the laundry and Ron shopped while I played with the grandchildren. Such love.

Speaking of kindness, it is alive and well, at least where I live.  It took about a week for the word to get around in the community, but when I posted on Facebook, things started perking, particularly among my cronies in the storytelling and poetry groups. Until I began to drive again two weeks ago, I never went without food.  Ben brought gourmet chili and then potato soup, Marlene brought fresh rye bread and beef and barley soup, and Sandee sent all kinds of delicious goodies.  Marjorie and Harry brought props for my back and legs--the list goes on and on, including toothpaste from Linda when I was scraping the tube.  They provided everything including vacuuming, the laundry and more. I am still amazed by it and learned much.  Now when somebody needs me, I will be there with some idea of what to do, but it took being on the receiving end of kindness for me to truly understand the nature of what it means to be kind. It's that do unto others as you would have them do unto you thing, and it seems to be a universal truth. I'm glad I learned it, but if I need further instruction, I'd just as soon not have a broken bone for a teacher.