First of all, let me explain. I was NOT planning to post anything today. In fact, I wasn’t even planning to look at my “screens” ALL weekend. (I do find that significant digital breaks are really helpful for me.)

But then . . .

a well-intentioned friend sent me a text this morning . . . with a link to something. “Did you see this?” she said. And I trust her, so I clicked. Even though I had promised myself I wouldn’t look at Instagram this weekend.

And then I decided it was worth looking at, and might be something for me to share with y’all.

So here I am . . .
SURPRISE!
Posting on a Saturday.
Because it is the first day of February. And I feel like I have been emotionally beat up this week. I’m exhausted. I’m sad. I’m having a really hard time looking for hope. And I need . . . a little something.

You, too?

Here’s what my well-intentioned friend passed along.

It’s Kate Bowler’s 28 Days of Loving More  . . . “thing” . . . for the month of February. Now, if you know me at all . . . you know that I hate ANYTHING that has to do with [insert # of days] here or month-long “challenges”. . . so please bear with me. Because this one actually passes my sniff-test. (And I’m feeling really desperate myself, and this idea at least got me to smile.)

I’ll just include Kate’s description (from her Instagram post today) of her 28-day “thing” for you to read. Because she is very eloquent, and can explain it all much better than I can, so take it away Kate. . .

Happy Saturday, and welcome to the first week of 28 DAYS OF LOVING MORE(!), a series where each week, I’ll encourage you to do one small thing every day to show yourself, your people, or your community a little love.

After all, love isn’t just about the Hallmark holiday and swooning, movie-worthy romances. Sometimes, the hardest part of love is learning to recognize the small, steady acts that connect us.

For the next 7 days, I’m encouraging you to do little things like pick up trash in your neighborhood or surprise someone with dinner, nothing crazy, I swear. (AND IF YOU HATE ALL OF MY IDEAS, use them as inspiration to do something else.)

She does go on to talk about tagging and other Instagram “stuff” (which I will not do; but if you’re interested here’s a link to her IG post). Kate also mentioned sharing with your friends.
Which I am doing.
Right here, right now.
(And I plan to post next week’s list . . . next Saturday, so I guess I’ll be back.)

So. It’s just a simple, lovely little idea to keep us going (and as Margaret Renkl commented on Kate’s post . . . “you’re so good at keeping us from weeping into our oatmeal bowls”) and to keep us focused on the little things that we CAN do; the little things that really matter.

Make it so, friends.
Make it so.

C’mon.
Fill your cup.

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(And if you don’t see this until next week, jump in whenever you want. It’s not a contest. Beginning on February 1 doesn’t matter a whit. It’s just about . . . small steps and loving each other . . . every day of every month.)