I really did receive that exact text message one evening from my friend on the way to a dance social.  The funny thing is, I actually checked my purse because I thought I just might have some in there.

No,sorry...Listerine and Chanel No.5 ;-), I texted back.

You have to understand this is new for me.  I was never the girly-girl who carries everything she needs to put herself together in a bag, but I do pack a mean picnic basket.  Granted, I like nice things and I put myself together well in the morning, but I used to melt and fade throughout the day until it was time to leave the office and head to the barn. My bag was where I kept credit cards, a passport, business cards, keys.  Not even cash.  I was lucky to have lipgloss with me. These days, or half of these days, I now head to a dance class or a social to practice dancing instead of heading to the barn.  That has forced me to rethink the contents of my bag. I do, after all, want people to actually dance with me.  It didn’t take me too long to figure it out…I carry a bigger bag now.  There are also two pairs of dance shoes in each car, a roll of gaffer’s tape and a pair of scissors, just in case the floor is bad or someone forgets their dance shoes. It reminds me of the bag my son carried his soccer kit in when he played; it’s my dance kit. My daughter saw my cute little Listerine sprayer and what she thinks is an even cuter Chanel bottle, so she carries those in her bag now, too.  It has become how we both roll; she learned it from me!

The picture of my bag popped into my head when Pam and Connie at HEALS told me about one of the things HEALS does for families that participate in their program.  She explained that many of these families don’t keep Tylenol or Advil in a house first aid kit for fever, and many wouldn’t know how to administer it correctly if they did. When your budget is so very tight, one doesn’t buy things that aren’t for immediate use, so that’s why many kids end up at the emergency room when all they need is something to lower a fever.  One thing HEALS does is to help get families to a place where they have these basic health items at home and teaches them how to use it.  This one little thing can have a big trickle down affect.

It was hard for me to imagine not having something as simple as Tylenol at home for “just in case”, but after we talked about how that happens, I started to see how HEALS, by making something very simple accessible, can change the outlook for a generation of kids.  They’ll grow up with a basic change in their home, and they will bring that knowledge with them to their own homes as adults.

If you haven’t yet made a donation to HEALS, I ask you to consider doing that today.  Whether you support me or one of the other dance competitors, all the donations to HEALS helps make big changes in these kids’ lives.

And Bob, there IS a razor in that kit…

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