"If you think you are too small to make a difference,
try sleeping with a mosquito."
Dalai Lama
'Mosquito season' is almost history...at least
around here. You think? We can hope so. I escaped this season
w/maybe just one bite...yay for me! They usually stockpile my blood!
In
1994 Michael and I did a trip to Alaska, just the two of us.
We packed our old Class C motor home, hitched on our little Suzuki
and off we went on a 100 day excursion...driving from Johnsburg, Wisconsin to
Coldfoot, Alaska. M pre-planned the entire trip, made arrangements for
our 5 acres/home in Johnsburg to be seen after and off we went. It was
absolutely one of the awesome trips of our exciting lives.
Among
other things, we fished in Prince William Sound. Cruised
around glaciers, fished with mother moose and calves in the middle of
the night. Hiked up mountains to beautiful lakes, fishing by
ourselves. Yikes...we were fearlessly foolish!
We
had the desire to sleep by the Alaskan Pipeline...so leaving the motor home
safely parked in Fairbanks, we loaded our camping gear into the Suzuki and off
we went...heading for Coldfoot. The ALCAN highway was something else,
friends! In less than an hour, we couldn't tell what color the Suzuki
was...there was so much DUST.
Intrepid were we...continuing on until
late afternoon when we spied a good looking spot alongside a stream (fish for
dinner)...set up our tent and anticipated some good cooking! Yay!
Yay,
indeed! We knew about Alaskan mosquitoes so we had netting for our
bods...lot of good that did...whoops! Got my potatoes and onions ready in
my oily skillet...stirring like mad over the fire and guess what? I
couldn't find the potatoes and onions for the mosquitoes in the skillet....this
is no exaggeration! Yikes. They were the thickest we'd ever seen
and we've been around the blocks more than once.
Giving up on dinner
we took to the tent for a good night's sleep which quickly
became a nightmare...oh yes! We grabbed our stuff...threw it in the
Suzuki and headed for Coldfoot and a breakfast.
Trust me, one mosquito
can and will make a difference in attempting to sleep...sleepless in Alaska or
anyplace else with even one pesky mosquito around.
It truly does make a
difference.
This
mosquito episode is to make a point; little things can/do make differences.
I'm
not the bravest soul around but at times I can be sort of...well?
Like…on
a particular day a couple of weeks ago I saw an awesome looking lawman in the
grocery store...I tho't "Vasca, you should tell him how much you
appreciate the job he and many others do"...but then I tho't "Yeah,
I see his cuffs are hanging there, he's loaded; what if I startle him & he
jumps"?
I
waited until no one else was in sight but a young guy stocking the dairy
section. Wisely surveying the situation
I decided to take a skirting approach from his far right side.
I stuck
out my hand and said, "Excuse
me please; I want to shake your hand." So, being
clever...he stuck out his hand and we exchanged shakes! I gracefully
said, "Thank you for all
the good you do in protecting and serving us all the time; you keep us safe.
I don't often need a police person but I know you're always there if I do and I
thank you very, very much."...he, very graciously, said, "Thank you, I appreciate that."
I smilingly and quickly disappeared before he could recover!
That's what
came of my exchange w/the law that day! The young man, down on his knees while quietly stocking the shelves,
must have been listening to the conversation.
As I was almost
out of hearing range, he made some awesome comments to the lawman; their
exchange was a 'little something special.' The exchanges apparently made
some small difference in their lives as it did in mine...a little something special.
Hopefully I
never think anything is too small to make a difference!
From my heart…to yours, Vasca
Amen!! Great thoughts....thank you for sharing
ReplyDeleteAnd I thank you for encouraging me!
ReplyDelete