Above is a pile of scarves and blankets that I have gathered from friends and family to donate to the homeless during the holidays.  I have been doing it for a few years now, and unfortunately, the need grows greater every year.  There are a surprising number of people with small children that are homeless.  It is heartbreaking.  So, I encourage all of you to give a little during this holiday season.

You may think that you can’t make a difference, but believe me, you can!  I have a story for you.  My boss looked to me for ideas for our annual holiday meal that we give out to our patients.  Traditionally, we gave them a meal to eat, but I got the idea from another dietitian to give each patient a whole rotisserie chicken to take home and enjoy with their family.  On the day of the chicken giveaway, I complained all day about fighting traffic while driving back and forth to pick up the chickens, re-packaging each one for each patient, and especially for the mess I made out of my clothing with all of the chicken drippings.  I felt miserable and couldn’t wait to come up with an easier idea for Christmas.  Then, a patient said that he was not planning on doing anything for Thanksgiving up until the moment he received the chicken…now he had something to eat with his family.  I cried when I got home.  So before you think you can’t make a difference, I’m telling  you that you can.  It looks like chickens again for Christmas.  You better believe there will be no more complaining from me!  🙂

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