The Season of Giving.

Ok people, get ready for some preaching. NOT RELIGIOUS, but expect to be told how to be a better person as defined by yours truly. If you are not interested I completely understand and encourage you to cut things off here.

If you do choose to continue reading, please understand that I do not see myself as the perfect role model. I can own that I have made mistakes and I'll tell you now that I am still making them. Life is tough, and taking chances, making mistakes, are important parts of the learning process that I think we all need to go through. And while I'm admittedly not perfect, I try really hard to be a good person every day and think I have a few good ideas for how other people should be a little nicer themselves. As it is the holiday season and there are a lot of individuals "without", below are a few ways I recommend you try to give a little extra this year for a better world in 2023 and beyond!

1. Grab change before you leave your apartment. (city folks!)

Easiest way I can possibly think of to give this time of year is by grabbing some change on your way out the door. And while I do mention "city folks" above, this applies to those in the burbs as well since I know the Salvation Army is out in numbers this time of year. I myself have always kept a change jar, but if you aren't like me, I am willing to bet you have some lying around in a drawer or on your desk from those few times you happened to actually pay in cash. While those coins may not mean much to you they can go a long way for someone when combined with another 5 or 6 people's contributions. It can be tough, the hardest part for me is actually that I want to help everybody, and it's terrible to feel like I'm picking who to help. But at the end of the day, anything you do is better than nothing, so grab a handful of change and spread a little holiday cheer.

2. Donate your old clothes BEFORE you get new ones!

Growing up it was a virtual guarantee to get clothes for Christmas. Every year I was looking at 1 pair of shoes, pajamas, a couple pairs of jeans, and at least a 6 pack of socks or underwear. Every so often I would even get a new winter coat, which felt more like an investment rather than an article of clothing. And while my parents were great about refreshing my wardrobe seasonally before things got too worn, it typically lead to a massive clothing purge in the spring when the warm clothes came back into the picture. These days, I like to spend a day or so between Thanksgiving and Christmas to go through my closest and re-asses what is truly essential. As temperatures start to drop there are a lot of people that could benefit from the sweatshirts I wore once this year, especially since I ordered two new ones on black Friday...assuming many of you are in similar situations, try to go through your closets NOW to see what you can part ways with before it gets buried under this years' holiday haul.

3. Don't waste leftovers.

I'll say it now, this is a tough one. I'm a food lover myself, so changing it up on the daily is my preference. But constantly making new food every day means something is left in the fridge and it hurts my heart, stomach, and wallet every time I have to throw something I made into the trash. What I recently did, and am encouraging others to do the same, was to go to the dollar store and buy a bunch of cheap plastic containers that I I didn't mind giving away. Then, after making meals resulting in a bit of surplus, I threw the extra in the containers and tucked them into the fridge with the date on them. The next day, before going to the store or running errands, I grabbed one of the containers and brought it along. When I passed by someone on the street looking for a little kindness they were pleased to receive a container of chicken and broccoli from the night before. Nothing crazy, nothing special, just a little extra thinking and a couple of throw-away plastic containers. And before you start typing the "I can't afford to give away my leftovers" comments, think about how many times you have thrown food away and whether you were worried about the cost then. Side note, this idea is also better suited for the city dwellers that walk by homeless people on the daily. If you happen to live in the East Village, you should consider bringing your leftovers to S'MAC where they have a "Community Fridge" open to the public and managed by volunteers. If you aren't in the area and would like to help, you can also donate meals to the fridge from the restaurant through their website.

These are just a few of the things I like to do around this time of year but being kind really has no season. It's a great place to start but I would tell anyone that once you find something that resonates with you, don't stop! Giving and kindness is contagious and one day, I think it could be the thing that fixes this world. If we can ever get to a place where we see one another as family, maybe things won't be so terrible all the time. If you have any thoughts or ideas for giving back feel free to reach out, I'd love to hear them. If you think giving and charity is stupid, that's your opinion, and your opinion just happens to be wrong. HA! All love, and happy holidays!!!!