Preface: Over the past years, our country's discussion on our discriminative and political divide has been visibly brought into our homes to witness. Injustice based on any discrimination should not be tolerated and should insult us all. Political divide is a bit different; we may not always get what we want, but that doesn't need to evoke hate. We are all someone's son, daughter, mother, father, wife, husband, neighbor and at the heart are good. We are re-sharing this blog post as a reminder of what that goodness can look like. Peace & Love to all.
They say as a country we are divided and that we have dug our heels into what will help each of us personally. Perhaps that is true. But I hear about our division more than I see it.
Recently, I was on a flight back from seeing my family in Arizona, when over the sound system came a request for anyone with medical experience to go to the front of the airplane. Within minutes, there were five people offering their services. From where I was seated, none of these folks seemed to know one another or the person needing medical treatment. The group huddled for a briefing from the flight attendants and then the medical volunteers got to work quietly, cooperatively and with hands moving efficiently. No one seemed to be concerned about race, political party or other. The attention was focused on helping someone in need.
Once we landed, another announcement came over the speakers informing us that we would need to stay seated until emergency medical professionals were able to come aboard and carefully evacuate the passenger. There were no grumbles. No usual huffs of inconvenience. Just concern and empathy for the person suffering. As I sat there watching the scene unfold, I was struck by how united everyone seemed to be and how it shifted the feel of the environment on the plane. Immersed in the warmth of the Kumbaya moment, the 4-H pledge that I had recited many times as kid ran through my mind;
I pledge my head to clearer thinking,
My heart to greater loyalty,
My hands to larger service,
and my health to better living,
for my club, my community, my country, and my world.
“That’s a pretty good pledge – good words to live by”, I said to myself.
The scenario and the pledge have stayed with me. It has also caused me to take an inventory of my life’s efforts and the purpose of those efforts. My life has revolved around food in some form since I was a kid reciting the 4-H pledge. From growing, raising, preparing, to serving it, food has been at the core. Although not always easy or lucrative, it's been good work and has brought people together, united them even, if just for a couple of hours.
All of us at Wild Idea Buffalo Company, are thoughtful in our greater mission of improving our environment, which includes respecting all things within that environment. The by-product of these efforts provides nutritious food for a healthier lifestyle. We do this wholeheartedly for us and for you (our community) too, and we'll keep our hands busy, working with intention, for our club, our community, our country and our world for generations to come.
I may be naïve, but doing good really does make you feel good. Better yet... it's contagious!
Photo Credit: Jim Henderson
25 comments
Thank you, Jill. We all need positive reinforcement now more than ever and it’s wonderful to hear the good stories. Take care snd lots of hugs to all. Pass them on in person as you can.
Hi ALL… I love everything about reading this again. I love the sparkle and joy on your faces and appreciate all the good work you do and continue to do! Love, love, love & hugs…
A story full of beauty, beautiful. Thank you, once again, Jill
A good reminder for all of us, Jill. Thanks. And thanks for all you and the family do for us! Hugs!
I have spent a good part of my 74 years seeking and defining deep inner peace, as though it is for myself first. When recently a Vietnamese Buddhist monk died, I found what I’d missed. “The peace we seek,” Thich Nhat Hanh wrote in The Sun My Heart, "cannot be our personal possession. We need to find an inner peace which makes it possible for us to become one with those who suffer, and to do something to help our brothers and sisters, which is to say, ourselves.” Which is also to say the last line of the 4H pledge.
Thank you for re-sharing your blog post: The Heart of Humanity. First time around, I missed it too. Which is to say it’s never too late.
Amen! A timely and very well said message that we all need to remember…Thank you
Hey Jill, proud to have said that 4-H pledge right alongside you a few times. We had a nice club full of good families and so many of those members went on to helpful, productive lives! :)
Yes. Do good for others. It does spread.
Beautiful. Totally spot on. Love (i.e care, concern, reaching out) really does make the world go ’round. When one can “feel” the love, it augments hope and gives courage a leg-up. Thank you.
the sun is our constant reminder that love and light embrace us always. we forget this at times, get caught up in whatever worldly duties confront us in the moment. inside our feelings of separation, when we get lost to our better selves and from one another, we can begin to recognize the pain this gives us. and naturally we want this to pass, to be relieved of this suffering we feel. we want to forgive ourselves and others of this error . . . because it was only a thought.
and when our forgiveness work has been thorough, this unforgiving thought will become amusing to us.
My heart is warmed! I tell my grandchildren (and myself) often “There is much more good in this world and in the people around us than we are ever led to believe by reading/viewing/listening to the news! Keep your eyes and hearts open to the good that is all around you every day!” I LOVE that you were reminded of the 4-H pledge! Keep writing!!!!!
My family and I appreciate everything you do and stand for. We need more people like you and we will always be patrons 🙂
Thank you, Jill. It’s good to be reminded, occasionally, that we are all far more alike than we are different.
This retired Arizona/Oklahoma paramedic is ever grateful for your testimony and your lifestyle choices. The impact you have on my household is especially beneficial.