Humans Behaving Badly
August 2, 2012 § 4 Comments
I am a host with AirBnB, and have had the misfortune of accepting a bad guest. That said, my experience with this guest is nowhere as terrible as the experience of another far more unfortunate host that had her San Francisco property vandalized, looted, and destroyed.
No, in my case, it is merely a case of a human behaving badly. But still, what I’m astounded by is how disruptive one person is still able to be and how easy it is for communication to break down when one person is not open to anything external to their viewpoint.
As a little context, this particular guest was traveling to Canada from Australia. My error was in accepting her booking directly, without asking for additional information and communication. And because of my error in judgement, my last 24+ hours has become infinitely more challenging… and I have another nine days to go.
Pig Roast: A community event
July 11, 2010 § Leave a Comment
Photo credit: © Vivian Chan
Two dear friends of ours are getting married this summer, and as a tribute to them, their community got together to hold a pig roast in their honor. An old family friend hosted the event at his farm. Friends, family, and neighbors from all around came together to both help with the event, and to celebrate the marriage to come. Saying a few words to kick off the feast, the host’s wife congratulated the happy couple, adding that this was the way their small Ontario town wanted to congratulate them. I loved that. To me, it was the perfect personification of the heart and spirit of community. « Read the rest of this entry »
The smaller things in life…
March 28, 2010 § Leave a Comment
This morning’s post is a shorter one, but something that has been on my mind in the last 24 hours: Gratitude. The feeling of gratitude, and taking the time to notice it, and then to feel it – I mean really feel it.
What triggered this thought is the wonderful human being that is my brother. (For the record, I also have a lovely sister that I love equally and am also unbelievably grateful for, but for now, I’m focusing on him.) This weekend, he volunteered to take on a task on my behalf that has resulted in the release of probably at least 2 full days of my time, not to mention the stress that would have come with it. I am ever so grateful. And there’s something to be said in feeling that. Fully.
It’s almost humbling when someone grants you a selfless, open-hearted gift that makes your life better in some way, no matter how big or small. I think it’s important to fully embrace those acts and to feel the gratitude that results. Not only is receiving another’s kindness and generosity a gift in itself – we are allowing another to contribute to our life in a positive way – but gratitude is the stuff that connects us at the core to those around us, and makes tomorrow that much more hopeful. It takes nothing at all to pause for a moment to accept the actions of others as gifts in our lives, and we all reap the benefits of it in the love, inspiration and positivity we feel.
To my darling brother, I am lucky to have you in my life. Thank you for your selfless assistance and love. I love you.
