If there are still a few people on your list who need a gift, it is time to resort to my personal favorite gift: create a handwritten note for an event or product to be redeemed next year. It is kind of like a gift certificate without the hassle of buying one.
But actually, the best gift we can give can’t be bought in a store. One of the best gifts we can give is showing compassion for others. It is taking the time to listen to one another; it is trying to understand each other; it is simply caring about someone other than ourself.
Before I was writing this, I was lamenting that my oldest daughter will not be spending Christmas this year. She is only four hours away and could make the trip home. But it wasn’t until she explained why that I realized we need to think about others and think about the big picture.
On a regular basis, she volunteers with low-income residents facing eviction…the very people who cannot afford to get sick and miss work. She doesn’t want to risk getting herself sick, nor infecting them. It was a tough choice to be away from her family over the holidays, but it is what she feels is best.
If there is one thing we have learned over this past year, it is that there is no perfect answer. Instead, we need to take the time to listen and be willing to open ourselves up to the idea that we don’t know everything, that we may be wrong, that we may need to change our minds.
And be willing to acknowledge that it is impossible to know everything that is going on in someone else’s life.
More than once this year, I have found myself frustrated with someone, only to find out later that I didn’t have the whole picture.
A friend hadn’t returned the text because they were short-staffed at work as yet another employee was on quarantine. Another friend was terse on a phone call, only to find out later they had gotten into a heated disagreement with their brother-in-law earlier in the day.
And until my daughter explained who she was volunteering with, I didn’t understand why she would choose being home alone in her apartment rather than spending the holidays with her family.
And while will miss her over the holidays, it’s actually not the first time she has been absent Christmas morning. She missed Christmas as well as her grandfathers’ funerals because she was in Germany her junior year of high school. So if we can be apart for 11 months and miss some major milestones, we can do it again if it benefits others.
After all, this is what is great about the holidays. People just seem to be more generous this time of year but it is something we could parlay throughout the year.
Maybe it is delivering a meal to your neighbor who doesn’t like venturing out. Maybe it is creating a gift bags to hand out to those who are down on their luck. Or maybe it is a simple as just listening…listening to someone you don’t agree with, listening to someone who tells the same story over and over, or listening to to your friend who has had everything go wrong this year and is hoping 2021 will be just a little bit better.
At the end of the day, if just tried to understand each other better, walk a mile in someone else’s shoes and showed a bit more compassion toward each other, we could make a our world just a little bit better. We can make our community an even better place to call home.
On behalf of the entire McCook Community Foundation Fund’s Advisory Committee, we wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a safe and happy holiday season.
Ronda Graff is considering giving her kids the same handmade certificates as last year: pedicure and massage…with her tagging along.
McCook's last hometown bakery closed this past week, leaving a void not just for donuts but for connections.
Many organizations and businesses in McCook offer the opportunity to recycle, reuse and repair items that may just end up in the trash.
Organizer for Buffalo Commons Storytelling Festival and former librarian named Oct 2025 volunteer of the month.
McCook's Third Thursdays were created to get businesses and organizations involved and designed to create life-long memories for the community.
Long-time community advocate Barb Ostrum received the Sept 2025 McCook Volunteer of the Month award.
We need to celebrate our young people while they are here and encourage them to return.
While some like myself appreciate a rainy day, others dread them for a variety of reasons. We need to be empathetic as interact with others.
MCFF Fall Grant Deadline is Oct. 1. Complete list of former recipients on MCFF website
With so much going, it is time for a “This, That and the Other Thing” column, where we will cover several topics, not very deeply but hopefully with a sense of humor as we clean up and prepare for a busy week in McCook. *** McCook again made state and national news this week for ice. This time, it was in the form of hail that pounded the community for hours upon hours. Conversations this week begin with “where were you….?” or “how many windows did you lose?” And while they may be legitimate and are offering their services, it is like vultures with all the roofing repair and dent removal businesses which have descended upon McCook following the storm. As city officials noted, do your due diligence with any company doing repairs for you and follow the old adage, which is old and still around because it’s true: If something seems to be too good to be true, it probably is. And one last note on the storm, we need to be careful what we ask for. As storm after storm approaches McCook and then splits in two to go around the town, we finally got one to roll right over us. The storm liked McCook so much it slowed down and just there. I was in Lincoln during the storm and trying to determine when I would drive home. I thought the weather app had frozen or the radar was broken because every time I looked, the storm was still sitting over McCook, doing its damage. I guess we can be thankful the next time a storm seemingly just goes around us. *** We are in the thick of McCook’s Heritage Days celebration. Congratulations to all the Heritage Days Royalty, which was announced at the MNB Bank Mixer this week. A special shout-out to Bill Donze, better known as Mr. Bill and his wife, Kathy, who were honored as royalty for their impact in McCook. As many know, Mr. Bill is fighting cancer and the prognosis isn’t good. The chances of him selling snow-cones and candy out of his van next summer near the McCook Aquatic Center are not good. One judge of his impact was the response to my column about Mr. Bill a few months ago. The post was shared thousands of times, viewed nearly 70,000 times with just as many comments by people sharing their fond memories of Mr. Bill. So when you see Mr. Bill riding down Norris in the convertible this weekend in the Heritage Days parade, send extra prayers and well-wishes to the man who has brought so much joy to so many kids - and adults too - over the years. *** Continuing on the Heritage Days theme, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that the McCook Rotary Club is tossing all egos and formality out the window this weekend. As the president of the McCook Rotary Club, I invite everyone to at least watch, if not participate, in the Rotary’s first inflatable costume relay race on Saturday as part of the festivities in Norris Park. These are those giant, blow-up costumes you usually see around Halloween. The first costumes were usually T-Rexes but now there is everything imaginable available as a design. With the idea for the race originally conceived by Melanie Goodenberger, she has purchased everything from corn on the cob to a cowboy riding a chicken. This is a fund-raiser for the Rotary Club with a cost of just $20 for a team of four to participate in the relay race. But it is also a chance to giggle, perhaps make a fool of yourself and just have fun. Come to the park Saturday afternoon for the Wiener Dog races and stay for the Rotary Relay races. While the dogs will already be close to the ground, the relay race participants will likely just end up on the ground. *** With so much going on in McCook this week, I debated whether there should be another activity the next week but the response has already been great for the Lied’s Arts Across Nebraska’s next production in McCook. Hosted by the McCook Creative District, the Omaha Street Percussion ensemble will perform at the Fox Theater on Wednesday, Sept. 24. There is a matinee showing at 10:30 a.m. but I will be up-front…we are testing the capacity of the Fox with every seat already claimed with students. If that is the only show you can make, please come and we’ll find you a seat but it may be those up in the rafters. Otherwise, please plan to attend the 7 p.m. show on Sept. 24. And even better, there is no cost thanks to the Kimmel Foundation and the Friends of the Lied. This is a busy week and a busy weekend but this is a great opportunity to sit back and enjoy a fun, entertaining evening of live music.
Most likely, we aren't going to be good at something at the start. But that shouldn't stop us from trying.
