Hello Stranger. “What do you do?”  Well Sue, I kinda get to do what I want! What do you mean?  I get to, not have to. I get to help families find a rental property. I get to ride my bike.  I get to volunteer where and when I want. I get to meet some incredible people.

I got to volunteer for compassion International today (https://www.compassion.com) and met These ladies. Sue, Diane and Debbie (above photo).

I also met a 23 year old kid named Salem and another kid from Louisville, his name was Alex. Salem was super nice and always saying how thankful he was for us and how much help we were. Alex was the same and always called everyone by their given name as if he was trying hard to remember everyone’s name. Maybe he was practicing for his political career:)  It was refreshing to see two young adults working so hard to be thankful and respectful.  Maybe that is the lesson today. We don’t know when we will take our last breath. I think I would be OK with that, “thank you” actually being the last word I utter in my last breath. Thank you Salem and Alex for your kindness and respect.

I am happy I turned left instead of right.  Because of that left turn I met a lady from Wisconsin that works for a company that sells those hand made bracelets out of yarn.  They are made by families in the Philippines and those families get a good percentage of the profits. Also, if you have a mission trip planned and need to raise money for it, they will send the bracelets to you at no cost and all you have to do is send back what you don’t use and half the money. That is great for both organizations!  here is the website http://www.threadsofhope.com.ph

I also met a young lady from Springfield MO that was at a coffee booth. Such a great conversationalist and our 20 minutes together felt like 2 minutes. Her husband was an avid mountain biker and she had many injury stories to share.

The best conversations are when you both leave thinking that you were better off for having met. I didn’t get any phone numbers or email addresses. Just a handful of conversations and a bit of volunteering.

Thank you for reading.

~every friend was a stranger at one point. Go out and volunteer!