Finding Sunshine

I have a love/hate relationship with social media. I don’t like seeing angry posts or letting time slip away from me while I’m engrossed online. However, the posts from the people in our community really contribute to the small-town feel of everyone knowing everyone else. The posts have brought people together in sickness and in triumph, through successes and through tragedies. From helping children battling cancer to supporting local businesses, our online community stands by all its members, even those who don’t know each other in person.

One post particularly caught my attention: a grandmother undergoing cancer treatment. I knew her name, but had not met her. She asked that readers send her prayers and happy thoughts. My kids also saw the post and decided they wanted to help her.

Flowers didn’t seem appropriate, but then I found “sunshine box” instructions online. Since we were in the midst of a dreary winter month with little sunshine, this seemed like a perfect idea. The kids and I shopped and found: yellow socks, lemon drop candies, yellow flip-flops, a sunshine candle. We put everything in a box topped with streaming yellow balloons, and dropped the box off on her porch with an unsigned card.

Our whole family was excited when we saw the Facebook post and pictures of her surrounded by all the bright yellow gifts. On that bleak winter day, she celebrated with a box of sunshine.