One Woman. One Turkey. One Story.

 Yesterday, a friend told me that she'd been to the grocery store and, at the checkout, the clerk told her she'd gathered enough points to qualify for a free turkey.A free turkey Thanksgiving week! Who says no to that offer?So, she got her turkey. A big one - 25 pounds - which she lugged to her car.She knew she couldn't use the turkey because her husband was out of the country for work and she'd be having Thanksgiving with friends.What would she do with the big bird?Inspiration struck and she immediately headed for the poorest part of her town. She drove around looking for... something...a sign? An intuition?Who needed this turkey?On one street she saw a man holding the hand of a little boy. They were walking up to a creaky-looking house with trash bags covering what must be leaks in the roof.She rolled down the window. In her naturally bright voice she said, "Do you have your Thanksgiving turkey yet?"The man replied that no, ma'am, he sure didn't.She said, "Well, you do now!" 
[Now, at this point I could tell you the meaning of this story, or extrapolate a larger story.]
[I could also go all emotional and tell you about how worried he had been about affording a turkey this year and the tears in both their eyes when the big bird was exchanged.]
But I'm not going to.I'm going to say this: What you do makes a difference. Everything - big things, small things - everyday.You matter.You decide how to live, how to be, what to create in the world, whether you're the one giving, or the one who's receiving.It's simple, really.Every day you have the opportunity to joyfully give something good to someone else.Every day you have the chance to receive with gratitude - whether it's a kind word or a turkey.And that's all I'm going to say.