Don't be limited by the size of your kitchen: Small things, done in a great way.

It's Friday, and time for another Thought Tale hour here at the Henderson'sIt's Friday, and time for another Thought Tale hour here at the Henderson's.  As you join us tonight, we are on the eve of celebrating the 24th birthday of our lovely daughter, Aubree. Her dad and I talked a lot about her this week, as he shared with my memories of her birth and early childhood.  I didn't get the honor of meeting her until she was 9, but from the beginning, she left an enormous impression on my heart and soul.  As we talked about her and her accomplishments, a theme for her young life started to take shape in my mind, and I realized what an inspiration she has been for many folks around her - I included.  Aubree is a giver and a doer, but more than that, she is one of those individuals who has a vitalizing ability to find just that right thing that a person needs for ______. Yes, fill in the blank....  And she doesn't just stop there.  She keeps going, helping other's find a vehicle to do more...

People like this can inspire others to give and also to serve.

Service, and the work that goes into providing it is about bringing all the right elements together and producing something that other's can benefit.  It's a recipe of sorts that gets altered depending on the size and scope of the people at the dinner table.  It's easy to think that if you can't be a part of an size industrial kitchen with all the best people and all the best ingredients that you can't possibly provide what is needed to make a difference in the lives of the hurting or needy around you. But people like Aubree remind us that it's often the smallest of things, done in the right ways, that produce what will last as long as needed. They have found a way to be 'gourmets' when it comes to serving up human kindness in the kitchen they find themselves in.

Don't let the size of your kitchen limit the gourmet within you.

 I can assure you that a profound truth in Aubree's life is that she didn't always have the best or largest kitchen to mix up the right recipe for those service opportunities she encountered in her life. She wasn't always called to do this for the beautiful and lovely, like rescuing small fluffy kittens (although she has done that too...)  Whether or not those called to your table are popular or the rejected is not something service gourmets take into account.  They see the need and a burning passion is seeded as they create the recipe for the hungry soul.  They don't allow the circumstances that surround them or even the difficulty of the recipe in front of them to dissuade from creating the feast necessary to satisfy.

It will not matter if they live in a village with a small population,  or in a large city of a million plus because they don't worry about the size of their kitchen. Oh, and being called 'Chef" is also not important.  They are happy to be the dishwasher if this is where they are called.  The most important thing to them is that they play a role, any role.  As they tirelessly and quietly keep finding ways to reach others, in small ways, their actions begin to spark imitation.  They don't gather fans; they inspire partnerships. 

Dream big - 

 Love big -  

The human spirit has a boundless capacity for love.

Aubree at 3, on her soapbox

Not everyone is born with this gift for insightful compassion, but the good news is, they are unselfish in their sharing of it.  We can all be inspired by them, and find ways to mimic the small ways they do great things.  This little one on the left started out with a booming voice and an extensive vocabulary.  Through the years, her soft heart has not grown calloused, but instead, just become bolder in finding ways to give love.    I have a feeling gardens, and forests of healing service will always surround her. 

So here's to finding ways to do small things in a great way, and wishing a jubilant birthday to Aubree.  We are drinking a little concoction I call, "Small but mighty".    CHEERS FRIENDS!

Joy's "Small but mighty" cocktail

In  a shaker with ice, pour:

1 oz of Everclear
1 oz of Peachcello
1/2 oz of Drambuie

Shake and strain into two small shot or Sherry glasses. 
Remember, always drink responsibly. 

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