Ripples Fan Into Waves

One of my fondest childhood memories is visiting my grandparent’s lake house on Lake Corpus Christi. Almost every Sunday we would go to visit and it was the best part of the week for me. The adults would most often stay inside and watch tv. Sometimes I would stay inside also, sitting in a chair next to my grandma’s recliner. I’d embroider or crochet depending on what I was working on at the time. The light was best right next to her, sitting about 4 feet from the sliding glass back door. Every so often she’d jump up and run out to reel in the pole she was watching because it would twitch. If she didn’t catch anything, out to the end of the pier she would go to cast the line then let it out as she came all the way back to the porch. She caught some big catfish that way and her fried catfish and beans was one of the best meals ever. 

My grandma taught me how to fish for perch, which she used for her trotline. On the days I didn’t stay inside, I would walk to the small cove next to their boathouse with my pole and smelly box of shrimp bait. I’d bait my hook and toss the line into the water and sit and watch the bob of the bright orange float. I think I was the only one of the grandkids that was quiet enough or had enough patience to sit there and fish. Once I was old enough they knew they could trust me, I would get to sit for literally hours catching perch one at a time.

I see what the lure of fishing is. It’s quiet and you can hear the wind in the leaves and trees. You can see ducks in the water playing and swimming. I would often watch for turtles little triangular heads timidly poking out of the water before finding a spot to sun in. It was peaceful  sitting there watching for the bob to go under, then feeling the adrenaline as I reeled the line in. Removing the perch from the line was tricky, you had to watch for the fins but you could do it if you were careful. Into the covered trap the newly caught perch would go, lid latched and back into the water to keep them fresh for the trot line. Then pinching off a little bit of shrimp and baiting the hook again, I’d cast my line back into the water.

Life was easy back then. Once you grow up, adult concerns like bills and how to take care of your own kids become front and center. We forget our childlike perception and views of the world. Life would be better for us all if we would hold on to a small part of our childhood and remember what it was like to see the world through the eyes of a child.

I remember sitting and watching how my bob would create small ripples in the water when it hit and those ripples would fan out. Over and over again as I cast my line into the water, the small ripples would fan out and go as far as the eye could see.  

A child has the ability with a simple smile to light up a room. I’ve noticed as an adult, simply smiling at others causes them to smile back and then go on to smile at other people like it’s contagious. Smiles are a small simple act of kindness we can perform. Random acts of kindness are like the ripples on the water. They spread out and keep going. One small random kindness can spawn several more and keep spreading until they are like waves.

We have the ability and choice as adults to perform small random acts of kindness every day. Many people today are really struggling and I know in my heart that doing something kind often has the ability to make someone’s day ten times better than it was. Small changes are small ripples that have the ability to become large waves that help people. For example, every person who volunteers is a ripple adding to the waves that help others.

We are busy people, but it’s time to unplug a bit and start taking time to know our neighbors and do things for each other. It is really up to us to make things different and that starts with us every day. I choose to help others every day as part of my busy day as a wife, mom, employee and small business owner. It is a simple choice and it’s easy to do once you start. Make a choice to create some ripples today that could fan into waves, causing positive change for others.

Kathie Hitt

Email: kathiehitt@yahoo.com

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If you are interested in making a difference and enjoy helping others, I would like to connect with you. If you know of anyone that is hurting in this economy that you think we could help, I would like connect with them. Paying it forward is what we do every single day.