Shelter

I love words, the way the roll and drop and pull at your mind and tongue. 

Shelter is a great word. It has so many means, so many uses... and so much emotion no matter who says it. 

I picked Shelter today because it's snowing again. Yes, it's April 4th and it's snowing - and sticking. Not just melting as soon as it hits the warm pavement... no no, it's sticking and building up and I'm going to have to use my scraper and brush to clear the car so I can run errands in a few hours. 

So, Shelter. I live in a house - it's warm and dry and I have groceries in the fridge and pantry. I made bread yesterday, and had the leftovers for breakfast. I realize how lucky I am though, and how not everyone has these options available to them. I didn't always have this sort of life to be honest. There were winters and springs in West Virginia when I was lucky to have my rent paid and the electricity still on... barely.... I remember what scraping by means, and how it feels when you don't quite make it. 

Not everyone has shelter from the roller coaster our weather patterns have been on lately. I hold ceremony indoors and beseech the Goddess and God to care for those who cannot get out of the cold or rain or snow. But that can't be the only thing I do. 

Now is the time to make donations of clothing and foodstuffs to shelters, food banks, etc - now is the time to think about someone other than ourselves. 

We don't all have time to go grocery shopping and drop it off at the food bank. That's fine - they take cash too. Why? Because everyone will go buy a few canned goods and drop them off but they need milk and eggs and perishable goods. They need cash to buy grocery cards that can go out with the dry goods, so these people can buy the stuff they need. 

Links: 
Greater Boston Food Bank: http://www.gbfb.org/ -- donation button is really big and on the front page. 

Feeding America: http://tinyurl.com/hl99p2a - that goes straight to the donation page.

There are so many more options out there, but these are two that I've used and feel comfortable donating to - they're very straightforward about where their money goes, and what their costs are. I really feel like they're doing good. 

And if that's not your thing, that's fine too. Big Brother Big Sister is always accepting donations, and there are plenty of clothing resellers that you can donate to that have better stances on what "help everyone" means than Goodwill or Salvation Army. Go ahead and clean out your closet. You'll feel better once it's done. ;) 

So, in this snowyness, think about the people who can't get out of the weather. You can do something about helping them, and you should. We all should. 

Blessings.