Ordinary People…

“We are ordinary people leading ordinary lives

We use lots of simple ways to get simple happiness

We have ordinary problems, and ordinary fears

We all take care of our business

Life goes on, and nothing changes”

These are the lyrics from the song, Ordinary People by the Canadian band, The Box. They speak to me because I’ve been thinking a lot about the difference between my little world and the big world. My little world is getting up each day, doing my job, trying to keep my house and yard tidy, cook, eat, do laundry and all the myriad of things that come with living. The big world is becoming increasingly frightening. Wars, homelessness, crime, and hatred are the fears that come to mind most readily. I tend to think in terms of the big picture but when it comes to the larger world in which I live, I am honestly unsure how to take it all in and I wonder if I can make a difference.

In the last few weeks I’ve seen or spoken with people and I realize that there are a lot of ordinary people that are doing extraordinary deeds. I decided this blog is about and for them.

My mom mentioned that she wishes she’d kept working for a few more years. I think it’s because she was having such a good time in her career. She had good people on her team and she got up and greeted each day with enthusiasm. She’s been retired a number of years and her schedule is busy. So why, in looking back, would she have stuck around longer? Maybe it’s hindsight or maybe it’s because she not only enjoyed her work but she was having a positive impact. My mom has never portrayed herself as anything but a normal, ordinary person. What I don’t think she’s ever really understood is the extent to which she gave back to her students and her teachers. She made a difference in her schools and the associated communities. I think she made them significantly better. I have always seen her as an ordinary person doing extraordinary things.

My mom and I were in my car in the city this past week. We were stopped at a red light. She was watching a man approaching cars on the other side of the intersection, asking for money. She didn’t say anything until she noticed one of the drivers handed some money to the man. I was thinking how small a gesture that was and how extraordinary it might have been to the man begging at the lights.

As I’ve mentioned, I live in a small village. We have a volunteer fire department. Volunteer. That means those men and women take training, give up free time and run into fires to save people, pets and property. Volunteer. I have always had a huge amount of respect for front line workers and especially for first responders. Anyone who hasn’t done the job, myself included, cannot fully appreciate all that they encounter and experience in the course of their duties. In the case of volunteers, there’s the added stress of having to leave work or home or maybe a birthday party to respond when you’re “on call”. I’ve been the recipient of the good work of our village fire fighters and I am truly grateful that we have such a great department. They are ordinary people who have signed up to do an extraordinary job.

I enjoy watching the news. This past week there was a stabbing in the nearby city’s downtown. The newsperson interviewed a resident, local to the area. She was talking about the increase in homelessness, drugs and crime in her area. The news camera showed her with pizza, handing out slices to some of those homeless. That’s an ordinary person trying to help in an extraordinary way. I don’t know a lot of people who would be that courageous in a rather dangerous area of the city.

My sister is an Education Assistant in her school district. In the old days they were called “Teacher’s Assistants”. In those old days, TAs were there to support the teachers. They helped with paperwork, set up classrooms, or took a problem child out in the hall so that the disruption they were causing was minimized for the rest of the students. As an EA my sister tends to be more specialized now. She may be assigned to a student or perhaps a special class. She works with the behavioural children and develops or amends learning materials that will be understood by those children. She may have nonverbal children in her care. She’s really an ordinary person doing an extraordinary job.

My mom’s parish has started holding an annual barbecue for the community. They invite everyone in the area surrounding the church to enjoy food, games and gifts. In my eyes this church community, which is an ordinary Catholic community plays an extraordinary role in the lives of the neighbourhood. It’s about giving back to those who may not have enough. It’s about approaching the world with open arms. It’s not about whether the neighbours are Catholic or even Christian. It’s about welcoming the neighbourhood to a feast.

I have a friend who is so busy that it’s a wonder she has time to relax. In fact, I wonder if she does ever relax! Sometimes it seems like her weekend barely allows time for sleep and during the work week, she doesn’t slow down! Now, some of what she is doing is pure fun. It may be a family outing to a cottage or a birthday celebration. But there is something more that she does, regularly. She gives back to her community. She’ll mention in passing that she’s volunteering at the arena for four hours or that she has to get a community hall set up or that she’s roasting turkeys for her church’s Thanksgiving dinner. I think a lot of people, including her sister, see it as busyness. And it is. But it’s something else, too. It’s my ordinary friend who is a mother, a wife, a manager, a friend being extraordinary as she gives back to her community.

Last weekend I had a friend over for lunch. At least I hope we’re becoming friends. We’re really just getting to know each other outside of our church community. It turns out she’s got a lot of layers to her - like my mom! She’s told me a number of times that she was not a stereotypical farm wife. She always went out to work and also raised her girls. After all, farmers are needed in the fields so raising children and housekeeping often fall on the wife. Some of the adventures she’s had include being a caring clown for long-term care facilities for fifteen years! I can’t even imagine! This past week she mentioned that she had to get going because she does the lunch program once a week at a nearby school. Someone might look at that simply as a volunteer opportunity. I think it’s bringing something extraordinary to the children at the school.

All of these examples are ordinary people leading ordinary lives. We get up each morning. We make our beds, have coffee or tea perhaps, and head to work or to our activities for the day. I’m pretty sure each one of us also leads an extraordinary life. Think about those little things you do, maybe without even thinking. You put change in a person’s cup outside of the coffee shop. You hold open the door for someone struggling with a wriggling toddler or extra packages in their arms. You show up to a meeting with freshly baked goodies for your team. You agree to take a tourist’s picture and hand them back their phone! You volunteer within your community. You give back in lots of different ways. Those gestures may seem small to you, but may make noticeable impacts on the recipients. I think we are all ordinary people living extraordinary lives.

This is the time of year for clean-up. I had an overgrown mess in this corner of the garden. Clean-up starts with removing the messes!

The evolution of change! I had pretty flowers gracing the shed for the summer but now... Something new is coming!

Making way for change!

A perfect autumn morning!