Interdependence

For the last couple of weeks, I’ve been wanting to rewrite one of the chapters in my book proposal that I haven’t pitched since last year. The chapter title that continues to echo in my thoughts is, “Be a blessing.”

I keep returning to these three simple words when I think about how to exist in this world. To me, "Be a blessing" means sharing ourselves with the people around us, even those we don't know well.

We were blessed recently with this Infatuation Sunday Dinner series opportunity. I say blessed because the opportunity came to be through a neighborly connection. They company invited us to create a dish for their month-long Black History Month Celebration. We decided to make a peach cobbler à la mode with a scoop of cinnamon hot honey ice cream. We took the opportunity to honor my godmother by naming the dessert after her. You can find The Gasby at our stores on Lenox Ave and in Brooklyn at the Time Out Market.

Being a blessing is like being a gift in someone's day. It's not about sacrificing ourselves to the point of martyrdom; it's about showing up in people's lives in small, unexpected ways that pour life into them.

Yesterday, I attended a Baby Sprinkle for a friend from our neighborhood who was expecting her third child. Another friend and neighbor hosted the party. We all live within blocks of each other and belong to the same church WhatsApp group for moms, connecting us in a couple of ways. At the party, I enjoyed catching up with other friends from our neighborhood and church. But this wasn't a conventional Baby Sprinkle. The guest of honor had requested no gifts. Instead, she used her Sprinkle to collect donations for another neighborhood mom who was also expecting her third child. This mother had undergone an emergency C-section at 33 weeks, during which doctors discovered she had Stage 4 stomach cancer. In an instant, her life had been turned upside down.

We're hosting a Stuff Your Stanley event on Galentine's Day this Thursday at all the Harlem stores. We got the idea to host it from one of the ice cream colleagues we met on our Oklahoma City trip. His team ideated the event and he has so generously helped other companies host their own. We'll see how goes this Thursday. Hope you can make it!

My friend, who is a beautiful example of what it means to be a neighbor and thoughtful community member, could not accept gifts for her family while knowing her new friend was fighting for her life. She asked us to contribute to a fund that would help the ailing mother's family offset housing costs for her parents, who needed to stay in the city during her chemotherapy.

Though this mother had only asked for prayers, my friend chose to be a blessing by using her own celebration to gather resources for her new friend.

This is what it means to be a blessing.

Group picture from the Baby Sprinkle

While my friend's gesture won't resolve her new friend's situation, this unexpected act of generosity will be a gift regardless of the outcome.

If we approach each day asking, "How can I be a blessing to someone today?" we will never experience lack. When we give generously, we receive tenfold in return.

I try to be a blessing through various small dally actions: connecting people who should meet, sharing our dinner leftovers to save others the effort of cooking, notifying my upstairs neighbors about packages in our non-doorman building lobby, and delivering packages to neighbors on my floor—even those I don't particularly like.

Recently, a coaching client shared that their neighborhood friend had been diagnosed with ALS. They recently visited to keep them company and helped send text messages since their friend could no longer move their hands; what a beautiful example of what it means to be a blessing.

There are countless ways to show up for those around us, regardless of how long we've known them. When we do, we build the social ecosystems that sustain us. Being a blessing is like singing to our plants—not necessary, but when we do it, everything blooms.

I hope you'll consider small ways to be a blessing to those around you. These actions are the glue that keep us connected and alive.

Petrushka
Your Local Ice Cream Lady & Life/Business Coach