Our Special Tuesdays

Dear Lane,
We continue our wonderful Tuesdays of delivering meals to home-bound elderly and less fortunate residents of Greenville. As I watch you walk in to the Meals on Wheels headquarters to pick up our meals with your chest puffed out and your million dollar coy smile plastered across your face, I just wanted to let you know, I feel the same way buddy! The joy in your heart is beaming on your face! And I'm with ya! Doing this simple deed has brought us so much joy. You wave at all of the other volunteers and workers as we walk to fill our cooler with juice and milk. You grasp the side of the table for support and hoist yourself up on your tiptoes and rest your chin on the edge to acknowledge the kitchen workers as they count out our hot meals and hand them to us to pack away in our hot bag. Someone always comes over and gives you your "badge"..."I delivered Meals today!" And then you show everyone you see for the rest of the day your sticker. You definitely, by now, know what Meals on Wheels (MOW) is and when I tell you on Tuesday, "It's time for MOW!" You walk around the house saying "meals! meals!"

Yes we are doing a good thing, but what we are doing for others is very small compared to what it is doing for us. We are able to interact with people we would otherwise never have come in contact with and feeling their generosity toward us from such a small task, is beyond describable. You have really opened up and love hanging outside their door for just a minute or 2 to chat. You show them your tractor or car you have in tow for the day and always always flash them a smile that in turn brings a smile out of them!

As a younger baby, older people sometimes frightened you. This has definitely changed your perspective. You are no longer afraid. We also meet people of all sorts of ethnic backgrounds which, of course, is teaching you the diversity among the human race.

The puffed out chest, the confidence, security, and comfort you feel as you walk in to pick up our meals...the smile on your face...I feel it too, in my heart and in my soul. Thank you for making me a better person...for allowing me to show you just how good it feels to help others and for showing me that this deed, no matter how small, is definitely worth more to us than we will ever know.

Love,
Your co-pilot in 'MOW' Momma

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Our special Tuesdays

Way back in November, I saw a news story that our local station was doing on an organization called Meals on Wheels. I immediately felt like that would be something I could help out with. I had struggled with finding a volunteer opportunity that was "Lane-friendly." I'm home with him and felt like I really wanted to volunteer some of my time, but the catch was doing something that he could do too! Meals on Wheels is perfect for us and for the clients who get to open their door and see this face:

It completely makes their day. Meals on Wheels is an organization that delivers meals to homebound elderly. And on the 1st, 3rd, and 5th (when there is a 5th) Tuesday of the month, Lane and I get that privelege.

Our route happens to be perfect for us. We have two apartment buildings and the first building has a cart that we wheel around that he can ride in. The sweetest little lady waits for me outside with the cart so I can load Lane and all the meals and drinks to be delivered to the complex.

We then go from door to door and floor to floor delivering meals to some of the tenants in the buidling. It is sad, some of the situations, but they are in good spirits and very happy to see us and talk with us and smile with us. Lane is such a good helper. When we go pick up our meals at the Meals on Wheels location, I let him carry in an empty bag. He looks so darn cute totin' it along. It's almost as big as him, but he handles it well. The kitchen ladies and volunteers love him! Yesterday he got a 3-pack of mini Hostess cupcakes (that I almost stole from him) from one of the kitchen ladies and he couldn't stop blowing them kisses and smiling at them. What can I say? The way to Lane's heart is through food sweets!

I'm just noticing the remnants of cupcake left on his face in all these pics...LOL!

The second apartments we deliver to, have their doors outdoor so we just walk. Plus we only have 3 meals to deliver in that one so it's not too bad. Yesterday, I think Lane could feel that it was such a beautiful day out so he was asking "park?" "park?" when we were done, so that's just what we did before lunch and nap.

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