{"id":8402,"date":"2018-12-21T08:09:30","date_gmt":"2018-12-21T14:09:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.handsfreemama.com\/?p=8402"},"modified":"2018-12-21T10:46:48","modified_gmt":"2018-12-21T16:46:48","slug":"notice-the-tiny-detail-capable-of-blanketing-your-whole-holiday-in-peace","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.handsfreemama.com\/2018\/12\/21\/notice-the-tiny-detail-capable-of-blanketing-your-whole-holiday-in-peace\/","title":{"rendered":"Notice the Tiny Detail Capable of Blanketing Your Whole Holiday In Peace"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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In a recent television interview, I was given forty-five seconds to share my story.  When I shared the video clip <\/a>with my online community, I was struck by the comment of a dear reader who had recently attended one of my speaking events.  She wrote: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI wish you\u2019d been given more time to share. It hurt a little that you had to rush your story. They don\u2019t know it was Avery who kissed your palm, that you left the knife on top of the peanut butter jar as you went to sit with her (a detail that has always been important to me). You did a masterful job of succinctly sharing your message in the time you had, but had they given you more time, asked more questions, they could have heard a symphony and not just a few stanzas.\u201d <\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

\u201cA detail that has always been important to me\u2026\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cA symphony and not just a few stanzas\u2026\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Those two lines stuck out to me. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This reader, a self-professed Noticer, knows there\u2019s great hope in the little details. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But the world we live in doesn\u2019t have time for them. It pushes us forward, weighs us down, cuts us off, forces our eyes down and away from one another. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

No wonder we so often feel hopeless, depleted, and alone. <\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The other night, I noticed a tiny, divine detail and also spoke of one. My husband, Scott, was standing in our living room lovingly surrounded by his work team of twenty-two. He began explaining their atypical gift this year. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAs I was deciding what to gift to each of you,” Scott said, “my daughter Natalie had just written a letter inviting friends and family to donate to a special celebration honoring 20 years of service and unity for a special community in Rwanda that she came to love on her Learning Trip<\/a> last summer.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sensing he was leaving out important details, Scott gave me the floor. I immediately described this important detail to his colleagues: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI was in the middle of folding Natalie\u2019s letters at one of her swim meets when Scott said, \u2018Maybe instead of gifting each of my team members individually, I could consolidate that money and put it toward the Togetherness celebration. Knowing my team, this is exactly what they would want to do.\u2019\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I told the attentive room of team members that in that moment, I had to blink back my tears. I sensed that effort, inspired by their team spirit, would be the start of a ripple that would become an outpouring.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWell, I\u2019m delighted to report that last weekend, this joyous Togetherness celebration happened!\u201d I told the team. \u201cFor so long, it had merely been a dream of Steven Turkinunkiko, founder of the Togetherness Youth Cooperative for orphans of the Genocide. For exactly twenty years, these young people have been working as one to heal, unify, and progress. At last, they were recognized for it\u2026 and your team started this ripple of possibility.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Whatever worries and stresses the team members were carrying on their shoulders when they arrived, were forgotten in that moment. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Laughter ensued. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Stress eased.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tears came. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Peace covered. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hope was found in the divine details of life, strengthening the fabric of humanity capable of blanketing us all. <\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

After complimenting his team on their focus on helping others and working as one, Scott became emotional while talking about the impact of the trip to Rwanda on his daughter. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The display of emotion was subtle, but I saw it, and it was an important detail. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Later than night, I went to Natalie\u2019s room. She was studying for finals\u2014books splayed out, notes highlighted, dark circles formed under her eyes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As I told her what I saw when her dad spoke of her, I saw weight lift from her shoulders. Suddenly, pressure gave way to hope. And this girl who is not a fan of physical affection, got up and hugged me for a long time. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The divine details have the power to push back the pressure, the expectation, and the noise of the world so we can reach each other. <\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

So here we are, nearing the end of 2018, and I\u2019m writing my final message to you. What shall I give you? The answer is simple. I give you ten divine, little details, surrounding the most impactful event of my life, to unwrap. May you find YOUR hope in one of them: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Divine Detail 1: \u2018I Am With You\u2019 Socks <\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Leaving my younger daughter Avery behind when I went to Africa last summer was difficult for me. In her bag packed for Grammy\u2019s house, I tucked a pair of I AM WITH YOU socks and filled a songbird note card with all the things I\u2019d want Avery to know if I was not able to tell her. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

On a very hard day of visiting the Kigali Genocide Memorial<\/a> and learning my dear friend John had passed away, my phone unexpectedly rang at the precise moment I needed a lifeline. It was Avery, calling me from Indiana all the way to Africa. Her voice, bubbling with excitement about water skiing with her Grammy released pent up tears and restored my hope.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTalk some more,\u201d I said laughing, grateful for this divine connection reaching over 7000 miles. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI have on my socks,\u201d Avery said.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Divine Detail 2: Thirty-Two Seconds <\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

I was hesitant to record video during the welcome ceremony at the Togetherness Youth Cooperative, but I felt compelled to capture a tiny bit of one particular song. I knew I\u2019d never be able to adequately describe the feeling it produced, and I wanted to remember that feeling forever. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I leaned over to my new friend Alice<\/a> for permission, and then I recorded for 32 seconds<\/a>.

Although the Internet connection in the cultural center where we stayed was weak, I stood over the modem for ten minutes later that night to send the video<\/a> to a dear friend. I had no idea she was facing the trial of her life. 

A month later, she said, \u201cYour trip to Africa helped me, Rach.\u201d 
<\/p>\n\n\n\n


Shocked, I said, \u201cIt did?\u201d 

\u201cIt was the video you sent me of the children. One day, at my lowest point, I watched it over and over, and I thought about all that they have overcome and continue to overcome. I could feel their joy and their hope, and it reached me and pulled me up.\u201d 

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Divine Detail 3: No One Came to Help<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Because of my friend\u2019s response to the video, I felt compelled to share it with The Hands Free Revolution community<\/a>. The next day, I received this message from a member:. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cRachel, I wanted to tell you how the video<\/a> you shared was a blessing. I have some dear friends who are survivors of the Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda. We go to church together, and their sons are friends of my son. Their entire families were killed during that time. This couple was not married at the time, but suffered the same loss. They are such beautiful people. I honestly have never met anyone who exhibits more joy than they do. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

My husband and I went for a walk tonight, and we ran into them. I shared how you and your daughter went there this summer. They were so blessed because when the Genocide was happening, no one came to help. They said the only help that came was machetes that the French government handed out to individuals. They shared how many survivors are now facing severe PTSD. I showed them your video and they understood the language. They were so touched by the love you shared with their people. I have included a picture of them. Your love was felt in Sacramento, California tonight!\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Divine Detail 4: A Dream Gets Wings  <\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Our plane had just lifted off the ground in Kigali, Rwanda. My emotional reserved daughter who rarely cries put her head on my shoulder and began to weep uncontrollably. Though her words were barely audible, Natalie expressed a deep longing to stay in Rwanda. She was adamant that her new friends needed to feel her love for them, even from 7,000 miles away. Four months later, this desire inspired Natalie to ask: What will my friends do for the holidays<\/em>? That is when she learned of Steven\u2019s detailed dream for a community celebration honoring the 20-year existence of this resilient and faithful youth cooperative. At a cost of $3,000, it was an impossible dream\u2026 until Natalie gave it wings. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This girl who shies away from the limelight and keeps her innermost feelings to herself, poured her heart into a letter mailed out to hundreds of friends and family. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMom, will you post my letter on your blog, in case others want to help?\u201d Natalie said to me. So I did<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Divine Detail 5: Many Small Ripples Create Big Impact<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI do not have much to give, but Natalie said a little can make a difference,\u201d one donor wrote. Donations averaging between $5-35 poured in to raise an astonishing $20,000. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The goal was $3,000 for a Togetherness community celebration; the result was $20,000 for lasting Togetherness community impact, including: <\/h4>\n\n\n\n