A Little Bit of Good

“Do your little bit of good where you are; it’s those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world.”
–Desmond Tutu

I was saddened to hear of Archbishop Desmond Tutu’s passing on December 26th. He did more than a little bit of good for so many. While his wisdom will be missed, I like to think it lives on in the memories people like me have of him.

Blessed to see and hear him preach at St. Mark’s Episcopal Cathedral in Seattle over twenty years ago, I still get goosebumps when I think about his words.

Stepping away from the pulpit to emphasize his point, Archbishop Tutu opened his arms wide and then wider still as he proclaimed “All, all are welcome here.”

Having done so much work to end apartheid in South Africa, Tutu could have only focused on ending racism – certainly a big enough challenge.

Yet, he stretched beyond to include his support for those in the LGBTQ community seeking welcome in the church. That’s why he came to Seattle. He was supporting our new Dean, Robert V. Taylor (emigrated from South Africa and the highest-ranking openly gay priest in the Episcopal Church in 1999).

With Omicron dampening spirits as we begin 2022, it feels like we’re being asked to stretch beyond ourselves once again to find more resilience, more compassion, and more kindness to support ourselves, each other, and those suffering the most (the children?) from the continued upheaval of the pandemic.

I will do my best to honor Tutu’s memory by being more welcoming this year of people, experiences, and opinions different from my expectations. And along the way I intend to do a little bit of good. What good can you do today?

May you give and receive a little bit of good each day in 2022 and look back at the end of the year to realize the profound difference your small acts of good made in the lives of others.

At Our Best