Yesterday was the first day I gave out Lullaby cards. I recently ordered them, but was dissatisfied. They were the first time I brought them with me, although they didn’t turn out exactly like I wanted. The font on the back was too dark to truly see the Joseph Campbell quote in it’s entirety. But if I kept waiting for the perfect moment to arise, and have the energy to reprint them, it may never happen. And so I brought the cards with me. A child wanted to pet Lullaby, his father looked at me querying me if it was okay for him to pet her. I nodded, and after some time offered the cards to him and his siblings as he pet Lullaby during the sunset. Another adult onlooker having a picnic dinner wanted her own Lullaby card, and so I shared the love.
This is the smallest act of kindness you can do to humanity. Offering a momentary tangible piece of paper that can bring a smile. And it can do so much, it can be contagious. Over the past year, I had dealt with the grief of losing my 16 year old chug Bella, and prior to that 15 year old English bulldog Puzo. I was literally running out of cards and couldn’t therefore give them out as freely, but also during grief it can be difficult to offer more. I didn’t have it in me to make new cards with their image on it, since they were no longer on this earth. Yet, with the arrival of Lullaby, things changed. She could be on one side, while they could greet strangers on the other.
And now with Lullaby we are doing this act of kindness again. She does this automatically as she greets everyone with joy. As I write this, I sit in a coffee shop, she’s in a stroller gazing at new customers and the song “send me an angel” plays in the background. This is poignant, as I am in a coffee shop I used to frequent with Bella. We stopped in the neighborhood to drop off donations to the rescue I got Lullaby from. In my old neighborhood, I walked Lullaby along the same path I used to frequent after work, along a marina. We sat in the same spot that Bella would take in the sun. There were some tears shed, but also gratitude to be here with her.
Lullaby has her struggles, she’s had her fourth seizure in the past two months. And as we are sorting this out, have her on medication, she still is full of love every other moment of the day. I hope this blog reminds you that it doesn’t take much to share kindness with a stranger. It only takes a smile.
It Only Takes A Smile 