doing good

angels are everywhere and i don't mean the figures in white gowns with wings. i mean real people. people you don't know or maybe you do.

several years ago i was broke. the mortgage was due on the house me and my four kids lived in and i had no idea where the money was going to come from.

divorced
4 kids
working three jobs
too rich for food stamps
too poor to buy food

pay the mortgage or feed the kids

tough choice isn't it? i hope anyone who reads this NEVER has to make a decision like that

i have a friend that has been a part of my life since fourth grade. we were such an odd couple. she only had one brother and i loved going to her house because she had HER OWN ROOM! i had SEVEN siblings and shared a room with two if them. we both had a huge crush on David Cassidy and would pool our allowance each week and ride our bikes to Pokey's for green rivers, french fries and the latest Tiger Beat Magazine. good times.

over the years we hardly see each other. but when we do it's like time has never passed. we pick up right where we left off. ups and downs. getting married. having babies. divorce. children. mental health. i can talk to her about pretty much anything. one day after a conversation with her about trying to figure out how i was going to pay the bank i got this note in the mail.

and a check for the amount due the bank.

i cried.
a lot.
i have kept her note posted on my bulletin board and i try to pay it forward as often as possible.
thank you mary beth

pay it forward

I am participating in a great blog event called "Pay it Forward 2011". I heard about it from Cat at Tattered Rebel and I just knew I needed to be a part of it. Here is the deal:

The first 5 people who comment on this post will receive a gift handmade by me, Laura of outside-the-lines. In return, you must write a blog post explaining Pay It Forward 2011 and send your first 5 commenters a gift handmade by you. It's a great way to make new friends and spread some handmade love around Blogland. With all of the talent that abounds around here, it should be a very fun time. No rush to send them out today or even tomorrow, but do make sure you send them out.

"It's not the size of the item that matters, but the spirit of paying it forward."

"I believe in Karma. If the good is sown, the good is collected. When positive things are made, that returns well."
Yannick Noah