Four years ago, I attempted to start a Facebook page and this blog called “366
Good Days.” The premise was that I would
suggest and possibly attempt one good deed every day of the year. The deeds didn’t have to be extravagant, but
needed to be helpful to others. I would
put quarters into vending machines so that the next person would get a surprise
discount. I would return stray shopping
carts in the parking lots to the proper corrals. I would give compliments to complete
strangers. This idea was inspired by a
friend who had vowed to do a good deed for 40 straight days in honor of her 40th
birthday, so I figured, why not?
However, after only a couple of weeks, I learned that it was much
tougher than expected. If I recall, we
had some bad snow storms that winter and I wasn’t able to even leave the house,
let alone do a good deed for others.
Even when I was able to get out and about, an opportunity for a unique
good deed wasn’t as available as I had imagined. Sure, I could present compliments or a smile
to others, but it’s difficult to build a Facebook page or blog based solely on “I
smiled at a stranger today…tune in tomorrow!”
Try as I might, I just wasn’t able to pull off 366 “Good Days.”
I never closed that Facebook page. In fact, I would get the occasional message
reminding me that I hadn’t posted in a while…almost as if it were taunting me
and reminding me that the page was a failure.
Well, perhaps not a failure, but just a mere nonentity. Ironically, I received one of those reminders
on January 1, 2020. Once again, we were
entering a leap year, another year with 366 days. To be honest, 2020 is going to be a HUGE year
of change for me for reasons that I’ll share over time. I wondered if this reminder was an omen to
me. I wondered if it was a reminder to
make each day of 2020 a “good day,” and also a reminder to share my thoughts
with others on the topic.
My original goal back in 2016 was to share an idea or
experience of helping others in some way each day. There was no better way of making a day good
than making it good for others. But as I
started to think about the concept in this new year, I realize that sometimes a
good day is defined by being good to yourself as well. On those days four years ago when I was
snowed in, I certainly had good days by reading a book or tackling a long
forgotten project. I had a good day by
just admiring the beauty of the snowfall.
I had a good day by realizing I was fortunate to still have power and
heat while many others did not. Yes,
helping another is an excellent way to have a good day, but helping oneself is
also important.
I’m not talking about truly selfish acts of helping oneself over
the detriment of others. I’m talking
about acts that make a person better…things such as enjoying one’s
surroundings, appreciating life with all senses, having an unexpected laugh,
and, yes, seeing the joy in others.
Today is January 6, 2020 and I can tell you that I’ve
already had five good days. I rang in
the New Year with family and enjoyed a traditional New Year’s Day dinner of
pork and sauerkraut. I also received
delivery of a new refrigerator as our old one has been struggling a lot
lately. I texted greetings and shared a
few jokes with some former coworkers the next day. On January 3, I ran some errands but also
helped a lady find the apple sauce at Target and received a pleasant “thank you”
in return. The next day I fixed my
washer which has been on the fritz and leaking water for the last couple of
weeks. Just getting that accomplished
successfully, without dropping any tools or creating any additional flooding made
my entre week good. Yesterday I noticed
three deer grazing in the wooded area behind my house. This is a sight I’d not witnessed in all my
22+ years in my house, so I really cherished this moment. And now today I sit here and begin my newest
campaign, venture, or whatever you want to call it.
I do not plan to turn this into a personal diary. In fact, I’ll probably mention very little
about my family. My intent is to convey
to you my experiences, thoughts, and observations on how each of us might be
able to have 366 good days in 2020…and beyond!
I’ll probably share a blog post every week or so and try to share some
positive “Good Day” links in my Facebook page.
Hopefully, this will inspire you to have a good day and share your
experiences and thoughts with others. By
sharing good vibes, this can only make life a little better for us all!
