Using Your Words for Good

Nearly every day I send a text message to my husband between 9:15 and 9:30 in the morning as I know this is his break time. I send a few quick words to let him know I am thinking of him, loving him, proud of him. I try and come up with a little something that I think will make him smile.

When my grandfather was alive, once a month my daughter would write a letter to him. She would let him know how and what she was doing in college and how his financial support has contributed to our ability as a family to put her through college. These letters were a small thank you for that generosity.

When I read a column by Rick Reilly in Sports Illustrated about the tremendous good a simple bed net can do in certain malaria infested zones of Africa. I wrote a check for $20 to the group NothingButNets.org, but I also wrote an email to several friends sharing what I thought was a real and tangible way to save a life, to do something good.

Today I wrote an e-card message and sent it to my best-friend just to let her know what her friendship means to me. I wrote a sticky-note thank you to a coworker when something she did made my job a little easier.

My friend, Kay joined a letter writing campaign started by several animal rights groups to a pomegranate juice company. It seems that POM was using a lab that tested on animals, killing them in the process. And eventually they issued a statement saying they would cease using that particular lab and find a place that is no-kill.

The common thread here… even the littlest words have power. Most of you reading this are writers, and all of you write. Sometimes our lives get a bit overwhelmed and we may not have the time to write those 1,500 words a day on our new novel that we had hoped. Stop fretting about that and do what you can. Use your words for good. Share a bit of love with someone. Write a letter to your grandparent or mother, father, sister, brother, son or daughter. Write a note to your friend inviting them out for a coffee or tea. Write an email to your local congressional representative about something that concerns you or to a company that is doing something unjust that needs correcting. Write a comment to me letting me know anything you want me to know. The big projects will get done eventually if you persevere, but don’t let the thought of what you haven’t done yet engulf your life. Do what you can when you can. Even small sentences can make a difference. Watch...

I love you.