Doing Unto Others

It's been a great week, meeting the residents I'll be visiting with at the nursing home; making prizes and crafts for them.

Oh, and I have my first assignment coming up next week to deliver a birthday cake, flowers and birthday goodies to an elderly friend in another nursing home. Helping him to feel like a king on his special day! How cool is that? :-)

The happiness I feel over doing stuff for other people feels so surreal to me. Not used to this selflessness thing. I'm not trying to be funny when writing that.... I'm really unused to not being consumed with being number one.

There's a freedom and an odd, enveloping joy that is taking over me. Serenity fits in there somewhere.

Working with the cats at the animal shelter gives me a feeling of contentment that I can not even explain. I met a new resident cat this week - Cameron, a Siamese. What a gorgeous laid back fellow he is. And he hung out with me while I worked on the cages. It was an honor to feel his acceptance. I know non cat lovers probably read that and think I'm off my rocker. Maybe. But cat lovers will understand.

This is Cameron :-)

Not to say I don't still have moments of melancholy. They seem a little less strangleholding when they happen now, and they tend to fade away more quickly.

I can't say I understand this. Me, who likes to analyze everything, is having to accept what's happening to me on faith.

:-)

I'm Back in My Tree Again :-)

Hello good friends of Squirrel Town. I've been away on an extended stay at the Squirrel Spa. While I was away, I had my friend Garfield tree sit my home. As you can see, he wasn't exactly gracious about it, but he did keep my home in good order!

I've decided to make this the summer that I do the things that make my heart sing. One of those is volunteering.

I've began helping out at an animal shelter for an organization called S.A.A.P. (Stray Animal Adoption Program), working with cats. Spending time with Cassidy, Bonnie, Madeline, Nina, Isabella, Harry, Jersey, and a few who have since been adopted (YAY for Mason, Cody, Larry and a few others!!) has been such a rewarding experience for me. And a lesson about life. I learn my limitations sometimes, which doesn't always feel good, but the lessons are needed. I am discovering that some of my priorities have gotten a little out of order and am working on putting those right. All this from working with little furry bundles of love who just want a home to call their own. They're all lovely cats. If you live near the Petsmart in Western Hills and are thinking about adopting a cat, you won't meet a finer bunch of felines. I can tell you all about each one's personality and who might make a great addition to your home.  Here's a picture of Cassidy, who's probably one of the sweetest kitties there, and she's such a fun, adorable, playful cat! Great with kids and grumpy humans who could use a lesson in lightening up!! :-)

One of my other volunteer activities has been helping at a nursing home. I help out with activities and shortly I'll have a few regular residents to visit. I like helping at the Bingo. It brings back so many memories of when I was a wee squirrel and my Dad was in the American Legion. His Legion group had a bingo on Sunday nights and he worked at that. My whole family went. Back then, in the days before cable tv, video games and endless sources of meaningless mind boggling entertainment, the simple things like families hanging out together at bingo was a lot of fun. I can still remember so much of that place - the building, the getting to choose my soda and snack, the eternal hope of WINNING!!!! Being able to call out that magical word - BINGO!!!! Anyway, all of that drifts through my mind when I help the residents play bingo. They play for a funny assortment of donated prizes - snacks, socks, puzzle magazines, drugstore items, etc. It's fun to watch them gaze over the prize selection. :-)  It's given me ideas for prizes I want to make to add to the cart. If you have any ideas for good prizes, let me know.

I've picked up my crochet hook again. Working on lap afghans for the residents, kittie komfees I'm making for my friends at S.A.A.P./Petsmart, and even a few things for my furry self and my family.

So, this summer promises to have new experiences and I can't wait to see what God has in store for me. The thing that on the surface looks the most mundane or least adventure-likely turns out to be the thing that has the greatest surprise and light bulb moments.

Let the fun begin!!