Helping--Part two (If we don't give, other's can't receive)

Regarding the last post on receiving help when we need it, there is a flip side to this.  How many times have you seen someone who needed help?  Let's specifically talk about mothers needing help since mothering is what this blog is about.  There's the mother who just needs a minute alone and has no one to watch her children, the mother struggling at church with multiple kids, the mother at the grocery store who has to figure out a way to make it through the store in the motorized chair while she keeps track of her children and struggles to put things in the cart, and many more mothers with many more struggles.

So here's the point.  On my last post I discussed needing to accept help, but it is impossible to accept help if there is no one willing to offer help.  As mothers, it is very easy to get wrapped up in the day to day parts of our lives and the shuttling around of children, and look right past that fellow mother who needs help.  

Recently I have been involved with many different events and classes that are self empowering, including finding my purpose.  I don't mean religiously finding why I'm on the earth.  I know why I'm here.  I mean honing in on a particular skill set and talents that I possess to give while I am here.  Or in other words, the particular work I need to be involved with while I'm on the earth.  And as many of you probably know, I believe that I was born to be a mother.  I get immense joy from just spending time with my son.  People have made comments before about just getting through the time of him being a baby to when he will actually be fun.  And I think they are crazy.  I have enjoyed him and his company since day one.  Being his mom was what I was born to do.

But, all these classes have started me thinking.  Is there a slightly broader picture I can take with this?  Something I can do to give back to more people?  After I thought about it for a while something interesting came up.  Since my thing is being a mom, there has to be a way that I can help others in their journey to be better mothers.  And that is how this blog was born.

Here's the thing though.........

The more I thought about it, there was more that came up.

One day it fell into my head this idea.  A non-profit organization with a two fold purpose.  Purpose one being to raise funds to assist mothers in things that they cannot accomplish financially.  Meaning things like having trouble having a baby and needing money for IVF or adoption or simply just not having the money to provide Christmas for the children.  Purpose number two being development of classes that aid mothers in gaining the knowledge and empowerment that they are looking for.  

This is all a little overwhelming though.  It take time and money to do a non-profit........

The gestation of this is going to take a while.....

But then I had another realization.  I can ask for help.  I have a goal to help those who need help, and ironically the solution to being able to help is to ask for help.  So here it is.

Even though I do not have the non-profit set up yet and won't for a while, I can still help someone.  I can still do something small and decide that I want to provide at least part of a Christmas for a family.  And there is this single mother that I want to help.  She had to get out of an abusive relationship.  Her children's father has the genetics that give him a skin color that the children have inherited and gets them teased and looked down on.  Her son has autism.  Her daughter loves to dance but she has no money to pay for lessons.  So she volunteers at the daughter's dance studio in trade for the lessons.  They are struggling and it has been a while since they have actually had a Christmas.  And I want to do it for them.  I'm talking big, like $1000 worth of a Christmas.  But I don't have $1000.  So I am going to do a few things in the next couple months to try to raise $1000 for them.  

So here's what I am asking for.  I need to raise the money since I don't have it.  So if you are interested, I am taking donations.  I am not looking for one person to give me $1000.  What I am looking for is a group of people who can give in small chunks even if it is just $5 chunks.  Let me know if you just want to donate some money and I will set it up.  Or if you are willing to help out with something else, like a bake sale or something, let me know also.  I think this would be really awesome.

I don't have much to offer in return, the non-profit is not set up so I can't even get you a receipt for a tax write off.  You will get the blessings of serving and if you live close enough you are invited to be involved with the actual purchase and drop off of the presents.

Think about.  Let me know through the contact for that I have added on the right side of the blog.  Let your friends who might be interested know.  Together we can make a huge difference in one family's life.

Allowing others to help

UGH.... It's been a month....

Let's just say that there are times when life goes nuts and crazy and hard and you resort to doing the essentials because you are not quite sure you can handle anything else.  And it's those times that allowing others to help and assist where they can is essential.

To many mothers decide that they are the living embodiment of Superwoman and Wonder Woman rolled into one.  They need no help and can handle everything.  While it is true that women are AMAZING and have capabilities FAR BEYOND anything they give themselves credit for, there is a reason why we have each other while we are on earth.  This is not an invitation to slack on responsibilities and pawn your children off on other people.  It is an invitation to consider saying yes when someone offers to help.

Especially when life is hard.

So it light of that, I would like to thank a few people.

A delayed thanks to the woman at Walmart who paid for my stuff when the machine decided to not take my debit card that worked at every other store.  There was money in my account but that did not phase you.  It didn't matter to you if I had a million dollars in my account or if I was negative in my account.  You just saw a young mother who was trying to not get stressed out as she stood there holding her baby and wondering why her debit card would not work.  You made my day.

Thanks to my sister who noticed that I sounded a little down in one of my last blog posts.  Even though I didn't really need to talk about anything, you were the only one that said anything and that really means a lot to me that you reached out and offered to listen.

And lastly, thanks to a new friend of mine who emailed me with an offer to help the morning after I was up late with a sleepless baby, praying for help.  You are the answer to a prayer and I am really grateful for your offer.  You and your husband are good people.

So the lesson of the last month is that I am not Superwoman.  And as awesome as it would be to be Wonder Woman so I could have her invisible jet, I'm not her either.  I do my best and that is good.  I am an awesome mother and I am grateful for the support systems in my life.  And I take the time to offer to help those people that I can.  We are truly a network of women who are amazing when we work together.  Together we are a superhero.