Dear Reader:

Haven’t we all witnessed a scene where we thought we might be of help to someone who could use a helping hand or a friend… but held back because we were afraid to take the initiative or concerned about how it might appear or be misinterpreted.

A young man, named Jamario Howard found himself in this dilemma when he and two buddies went to Brad’s Barbecue restaurant in Oxford, Alabama last weekend. As they were waiting to be served he noticed an elderly woman sitting by herself and thought to himself that he sure would hate to have to eat alone.

Without second-guessing this initial instinct he walked over, introduced himself, and asked the woman if she would like some company. She said that would be nice and the two struck up a conversation ….she telling Howard that her husband had recently died and that their 60th anniversary was coming up…he had always like barbecue so she decided to come in and celebrate it in his memory.

They soon joined Howard’s two buddies and had a wonderful evening…agreeing to meet again whenever she returned alone…if she wanted the company…she said she did.

After this photo was taken…Jamario Howard wrote this on his facebook page.

So tonight JaMychol Baker, Tae, and myself went out to eat at this place called Brads in Oxford, and after us sitting there a while waiting on our food i noticed an elderly woman sitting alone. My exact thoughts was “dang I’d hate to have to eat alone”. So after thinking about it a minute i walked over to her and asked if i could sit with her. She said yes and we talked for a minute and after a while of talking she told me she lost her husband and that tomorrow would have been their 60th anniversary. I instantly gave my condolences and asked her to come eat with us, which she was excited to do. The point in this is always be kind and be nice to people. You never know what they are going through. This woman changed my outlook on life and how i look at other people. Everyone has a story so do not judge! And people i can’t stress this enough. GO SEE YOUR MOM AND YOUR GRANDPARENTS. They miss you!

Widow who was invited to eat with strangers: “I think God sent me … (Click on two minute video of the whole story)

Over and over it becomes more obvious to us…we might not be able to do a lot of things in this life… but everybody, no matter the circumstance, can be kind. Our worse enemy is ourselves when we overthink a situation where we could be of help but worry about what others might think instead of just doing what we know is right.

Until tomorrow…. Two greatest attributes…kindness and  the courage to carry it out.

“Today is my favorite day”  Winnie the Pooh

Yesterday was Part B of Eva Cate’s birthday weekend….several little girls from her class joined Eva Cate at the Charleston Museum to re-visit the fifties by learning  fun facts about this decade, listening to 50’s music, and doing art projects… decorating cat eye sunglasses and old coke glasses. Then the whole group got a special tour of the Charleston Museum…the oldest museum in the country…even getting to dress in period pieces. I love that Eva Cate loves history! *I learned a lot!

After I left Mandy and John’s I went to Tommy and Kaitlyn’s house…they are leaving for Dingle, Ireland in about a week and it seems like I haven’t had a chance to hardly see them since Christmas except for small moments of time. So we went out to eat at a Mexican restaurant on Sullivan’s Island and had the most delicious meal I can remember…haven’t had real Mexican food in quite awhile and it was outstanding.

Tommy and Kaitlyn will be celebrating their second anniversary while in Ireland….such a joyous occasion!

Remember to dress warmly, bundle up and live by the weather creed of Ireland…“There’s no such thing as bad weather in Ireland…only the wrong clothes.”