Peppermint Bark + a wish

I set my alarm to wake up early on a Saturday morning. A true rarity. To do something I really didn’t want to do. Yet another true rarity. I like my comfort zone. But I was committed. I circled yes.

My church does this thing called “The Closet.” It’s a place where homeless people can come for their winter essentials to survive another Chicago winter. Literally survive. A warm coat. A hat. Gloves. A scarf. And snow boots. For three years I’ve been promising myself I would work a Saturday. And for three years I’ve slept in. Selfishly. I’ve found better things to do like bake and take pictures and work out.

Over the past couple of years I’ve become numb to the homeless lined streets of my urban city. Until I woke up early on a chilly Saturday morning. I met people. People with stories. With smiles. People who I thought needed me, but really I needed them. The first woman we helped said to me—this must make you feel good. She’s right. It did. And it also made me sad. Sad that I’ve slept in. Sad that I’ve ignored the needs of my neighbors. And sad that my motivation is selfish at its root. As the hours passed that Saturday morning, the scarves, the coats, the gloves, the snow boots—they all began to disappear. Come back in a couple weeks, we told them in hopes the shelves would be replenished.

In a twist of events, I got a random email from the Fairy Hobmother, the face behind Appliances Online. She sells sweet appliances like this. She also swoops by unexpectedly to offer Amazon gift cards to strangers like me. I had list of all the different ways I could spend it. And then I remembered my neighbors. The ones I woke up for. The ones that were told to come back in a couple weeks. My wish for them this season is warmth. For warm coats, and gloves, and scarves. My wish for myself is to wake up more often. Leave a wish, comment, or thought and the Fairy Hobmother just might visit you. Thank you Fairy Hobmother!