miracle balloons

It is summer time, for me that means more free time, since we don't school year round, and miracle balloons at Dairy Queen.

Dairy Queen has been selling the paper balloons for as long as I remember.  They didn't really mean much to me when I first worked there.  Sure giving a dollar to a good cause and getting coupons was nice and all, but it didn't really impact me.  When James died that changed.

The donations collected in our area go directly to the place he past away.  For me buying a balloon is now a way of saying thank-you to the hospital staff who struggled to keep him alive and, when they failed, the staff who were the first to offer comfort while I grieved.

So when Miracle balloon sales began three years ago the balloons had new meaning and importance to me.  I wanted to give more, to do more.  I decided to encourage to local store, where I worked, to promote the balloons more and we began a raffle.  Ticket were earned when ballon sales were good and names were drawn at the end of the selling season.

I didn't realize how draining caring would be, how emotional I would be.  In the end it was good and gave me an outlet for both my grief and my energy.

This year I'm not working, I'm home being a mom to my other kids.  But I still want to be a part of something bigger than me and Miracle balloons are what I know.  So I am sponsoring the raffle again and feeling the drain on my emotions.  How is it that caring can feel so good and so bad.