Hope Basket

I gave the Hope Basket to my friend on Sunday. We were in post-hurricane misery and I knew I could find her at her Mama's. I didn't take a picture of the finished basket because the light wasn't good. I was in a hurry to place the basket in her hands.

You all were wonderful with your suggestions. Thank you for the many ways you help me.

I took a small basket of brown willow and decorated it with a sprig of fake greenery and berries. I don't care much for artificial greenery because the designers get it wrong but this sprig looked ok to me.

In the basket I placed:

a small glass heart with a note for her to carry the heart with her to remember that she is loved

hershey's kisses for sweetness

two sayings, one from Reinhold Neibuhr and the other from Frederick Buechner written on water color paper then trimmed with scallop scissors and painted with a light edge of champagne watercolor paint

a sterling sugar spoon with a note on ribbon reminding her that there will be sweet moments for her

a packet of seeds for future growth

a silly refrigerator magnet about hoping for the future

a cross to symbolize Where Our Hope Comes From

a bracelet kit for a creative moment

a sparkly bracelet for a down day

and a note from me telling her I have an idea of what she's going through and my affection for her as she struggles

She called me on Monday to thank me. She says she understands what the basket is about and liked it.

I send out Hope Baskets to each of you who are struggling with a future which appears to be more than you can handle. Life is like this. Being overwhelmed happens. However, I remind you that often it is in these moments of misery when we feel that we lack the resources to cope that our greatest insights come.

It's too bad that learning the Big Lessons is painful. No one enjoys this. It's just the way it is.

Yours,
St.Casserole