I DID IT! I REINSTATED SHOE POLISH! And it Planted a seed inside of me!
It sounds a little silly I know but I have felt a HUGE sense excitement and accomplishment. For some reason it was empowering! I feel like I can put on my newly polished shoes, go out into the community and give it a new coat of polish as well.
It's amazing what we can do if we just start. It doesn't have to be something HUGE either. Remember when I mentioned in Shoe Polish 1 how simple things can create more economy? Let me tell you about a little 5 year old girl in an apartment complex I lived in about 15 years ago. One early spring day she was eating watermelon and decided to keep and plant the seeds.
She told her mommmy:
"I'm going outside to plant my seeds!"
And her mommy who was doing the dishes and not really paying attention didn't really think anything of it.Until she heard the door close. She watched her daughter go to the side of the apartment where they lived and dig a small shallow hole with a plastic spoon. Her daughter then dumped a pile of seeds into the shallow hole and then scooped a cup of dirt on top and then a small cup of water. And she ran back in and told her Mommy what she did!"that's nice baby girl" said her mommmy and went back to doing house work.
Every couple days the little girl would announce she's going to water her seeds. The Mom didn't pay too much attention to it and eventually forgot about it.
About 3 months later the mother and all the other tenants of the apartment complex noticed a vine sort of growing around the staircase and getting caught around their legs when going and coming up the stairs.
There was talk amongst the tenants of yanking it out and where had it come from. Then one day while the tenants were sitting out in the lawn enjoying a hot summer day the little girl came out of the house with a little cup of water. The mommy remembered...and explained;"OH NOO! I think that vine we've all been tripping under is a watermelon plant!"
No longer annoyed, excitement started to ripple through the apartment complex. The mommy would come home from work and find some of tenants weeding and care for the plant. It began to bloom and excitement grew as everyone waited patiently for the sweet fruit of the summer to ripen and grown.
Finally when the time was right the apartment complex for the later part of the summer watermelon.
It was such a great amazing treat! When the apartment manager learned what happened he was tickled to death. The next spring he pulled out the bushes in front of the complex and planted zucchini, the state vegetable of Utah. There were many types of families living in this complex: single parents, Older couples, Children caring for elderly parents, Newly weds and New parents all in various financial circumstances. Many were able to have extra meals on their tables from this simple act of kindness.
When the little girl and her mommy moved away the apartment complex was still enjoying that little tradition. All because a little girl planted water melon seeds one day.
It doesn't take much, Whether it be Watermelon seeds, Shoe polish or even a little kool-aid stand on the corner with little kids trying to earn enough money to buy their Mommy or Daddy a birthday present. We have it in use to create great community spirit that can cause a ripple effect within this great nation.
I hope everyone will begin to exercise your right to reinstate shoe polish.
And if you do, I would LOVE for you to share your comments and stories.
