Wait! You did what?
/“Wait! You did what?”
Over the last month, this phase has come out of my mouth more times than I can count. My neighbors, friends, and even my mother have said they have done things I never imagined they would.
“Yes, I bought a bicycle even though I don’t know how to ride one!”
“Yes, I made over three hundred cookies for the kids in my neighborhood!”
“Yes, I put up a “dance only zone” at both ends of the sidewalk in front of my house, so people would dance across my yard when they are on their daily walks with their family!”
One only has to look on Facebook to see all the wacky, wonderfully wonky things people are doing to encourage and care for their neighbors.
My favorite one was something my friend Holly did in her neighborhood. Holly the holy grail of the coronavirus pandemic. . . EXTRA TOILET PAPER! Instead of keeping it all for herself, she got to thinking, “What is something fun I can do with this?”
On the night before Easter morning, she got her two kids together, and they began to make bunny ears and attach these ears to the extra toilet paper. At the crack of dawn on Easter morning, she sent her kids out to place their bunny toilet paper on the doors of their neighbors with a note, thanking them for being their neighbor. Everyone, LOVED their bunny toilet paper. Holly’s neighbor thought it was hilarious and asked if her kids could hang out while social distancing. Holly’s generosity led to greater relationships on her street!
When Holly told me this story, I of course responded with “Wait! You did what?” and was filled with delight and laughter about her ingenious idea. Her mischief with toilet paper got me thinking about some questions to ask ourselves as we continue to navigate the challenges of coronavirus together:
“What is something fun and playful I can bring into the world during a time that can feel heavy and overwhelming?”
“What is something I can do that will lead someone to ask, ‘Wait! You did what?’” - though something that is safe and not irresponsible :)
“How might I choose to respond out of abundance, rather than scarcity, with what I have?”
As for my neighbors, they better watch out. My wife and I just found an abundance of googly eyes in our closet...