26 Acts of Kindness - Day 4

Today we honored Olivia Engel, age 6. Olivia had her whole life ahead of her, and what an amazing life it would have been. She seems like she would have been the girl who had the lead in the high school musical, was the captain of the tennis team, and the high school valedictorian. In her last family photo she wears a shirt with one simple word: joy. 


And what a joy to her family she must have been. She led grace every night at dinner, adored her younger brother, and her bubbly, infectious laugh surely must have brought joy to her parents. As I read about young Olivia one thing stood out more to me that anything else: the fact that she carried her beloved stuffed lamb with her wherever she could. This reminded me of my own daughter who rarely goes anywhere without her stuffed dog, Bup. It breaks my heart to know that little Olivia is younger still than my precious daughter.

Tonight's Random Act became a family affair. The whole family walked into Target with a mission to find a cuddly stuffed animal or two. Wouldn't you know it, for all of Target's awesomeness it does not have the best selection of stuffed animals. 

After scouring many aisles and thinking we would have to go elsewhere we finally discovered something that might fit the bill: mini Pillow Pets. 

We picked out one Pillow Pet for each of us, and took them to the local family shelter. We hoped that these cuddly friends could help a few young children adjust at a very hard time. 

We left them with the receptionist of the shelter. She informed us that they would be well used, as the shelter gives each child a present upon arriving and upon departure. 

Hopefully this small deed will bring that which Olivia brought to the world - joy.

"A laugh, to be joyous, must flow from a joyous heart, for without kindness, there can be no true joy." -Thomas Carlyle