Bulls, Boys, and Blessings
Waving the Month of May, part two.
Julia Jacobsen kindness rural small changes small town wave
Did my attempt to wave at everyone I see in my small town move mountains? Nope, I noticed no mountains moved. Did it change something inside for me? Yes, I think it did and it goes back directly to the notion that you notice what you focus on. I do in fact think people are waving more. Does it have anything to do with me? It is rather unlikely but if it did that’s cool too.
Waving the Month of May.
Julia Jacobsen friendly Harrington small town wave
When I arrive the room feels somber. I’m not sure what I walked in on but I can tell it feels heavy. The discussion is about our only bank in town “temporarily closing” due to staffing issues at a nearby branch. There was little to no notice or communication so when people stopped by the bank they were greeted with a locked door and a sign describing the “temporary” closure. In my head as I write this I’m using air quotes over the word “temporary”. It reeks of writing on the wall. That it won’t be temporary at all.
When Your Waitress Hands You a Road Flare.
Julia Jacobsen Kindness Locals Oregon Route Ukiah Waitress
The unkind way we talk to ourselves is finding its voice inside my head. “You stupid woman” is a phrase I’m thinking about telling myself. I should know better! I live in the country and while not at the elevation I’m currently at I’m not an idiot but my inner voice is ABOUT to tell me I am. What happens instead is I’m offered a road flare while another woman steps in and is calling to find lodging just in case I end up needing to stay the night. My server in between her customers keeps checking the weather report and has more bad news. My best route out of here is reporting 100% chance of snow, 12-18 more inches! I want to give myself a good lecture and I would have but there was no time for that in between several strangers looking out for me.
Tiny sparks at the Cadillac Ranch
Julia Jacobsen Amarillo Cadillac Ranch Cattle Road Trip Texas Tiny spark
It was just a tiny spark. That’s what it felt like. The kids looked so proud (as they should be) their mom gave them all the credit and I was inspired. We didn’t bring any cans with us, as we didn’t know that was the point. By the time my new friends had left there were already 2 cans sitting by the cars. They still had paint in them so I let my 3 year old make his mark and we took the now empty cans back with us to throw them away. It makes me wonder if I would have arrived and there was still trash everywhere if I would have left them behind? I’d like to think not, I’m a bit of a rule follower especially when it comes to litter bugs. I don’t know when and I don’t know where but I do KNOW that I will keep that spark lit and pay it forward elsewhere.
Somewhere In Kansas.
Julia Jacobsen
During her visit we talked about her first real job as an adult, she lived in Maywood, a suburb of Chicago and worked at a Kool Aid factory that sent cases of Kool Aid to our troops in Vietnam and earned wages of $1.69 an hour. She liked it because she had 11 kids at home and her boss let her take home the defective packets, ones that didn’t seal or had some kind of error that prevented them in stores. Six of those kids are my older siblings and the remaining five were her younger siblings who lived with her and her first husband after my grandmother passed away.