TheBanyanTree: Helping Hands

[Margaret R. Kramer]

There was a sunrise this morning with a real sun!  The rain moved away last
night and my eyes were greeted with the sun’s light when I peered out the
window this morning.  My day is defined for me now; I’ll get to cut the
grass when I’m done with workout.  Even though it’s cooler and we have less
sun, the rain has made the grass grow at an alarming rate this week.  Well,
in another month, I won’t have to cut the grass anymore.

It’s a big chore here at the new house.  We ripped out the grass at our old
house and replaced it with mulch, because we had so many trees in the
backyard, it didn’t grow anyway.  So, we only had to cut the front yard at
the old house and it didn’t take much time at all.  We have a big lot at
this new house and we have one big tree in the back and one big tree in the
front yard.  The front yard isn’t too bad to mow, but the backyard is HUGE!
I mow and mow and mow and it seems like forever before I’m done.  But it’s
good exercise and most of the time I don’t mind it.

Ray and I plotted out our garden strategy for next spring.  I’ll make a fern
garden in the darkest  corner of the yard.  We’ll have flowers run along the
side of the garage.  We’re thinking of planting some kind of shrubs and
lilacs behind the garage.  Then we’ll make a small patio by our outdoor
fireplace.  The yard will come together more next year.  This summer was an
experiment to see how things grow.

Moving from the subject of outdoor chores to the not very related subject of
volunteer efforts, I want to mention how much my workplace volunteers and
donates to various charities.  We’re a development office as part of a large
corporation.  Right now, there are about 50 of us working in our office.
Even with such a small number of people, there are constantly activities
going on in our office to promote charitable donation.

For example, we are part of “Adopt a Highway,” which means we clean a mile
stretch of a highway four times a year.  We send a team to “Race for the
Cure” each year and participate in other breast cancer fundraisers.  We send
supplies to soldiers stationed overseas.  We collected a huge amount of
school supplies for low income children.  We donate to the food shelf.  We
participate in “Feed Our Starving Children.”  This group sends food overseas
and groups of people come in to the warehouse and help pack up the food.
For the past two weeks, we have delivered meals for “Meals on Wheels.”  I
got to deliver meals this week and it was fun.

I have never worked in an office before where giving of ourselves is
promoted so much.  Our manager sets the tone for this, and the office
follows.  It amazes me how much we give, because we’re such a small office,.
It’s good that we reach into our pockets all year long instead of just at
Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Margaret R. Kramer
margaretkramer at comcast.net

I am learning all the time.  The tombstone will be my diploma.
~Eartha Kitt