My Thoughts on Labor Day 2017

Hi friends! I know it’s been a while since I shared a new outfit with all of you and I have mixed feelings about sharing new outfits with all of you while some in Houston/Texas/Louisiana have lost so much. This storm has caused more devastation to Houston than I could have ever imagined and this Labor Day has a bit of a different meaning to me. LDW is meant to celebrate all of the hard work it took to create the United States and has recently been viewed as the unofficial end of summer. (Side note: How is it already September? It seems like we were just ringing in the new year…)

Residents of Houston and all of those affected by Harvey didn’t quite have the last hoorah of summer we all were looking forward to, as the process to gut houses and start the recovery process began just a few days ago. I had the opportunity to see the devastation first hand this past weekend to help a friend remove the flooring and sheet rock from their five foot flooded home. As I was driving away, I was in tears. The amount of devastation I could visibly see from the belongings, housing materials and furniture that had to be thrown away was astounding. And I know that what I was seeing was only the material damage – the emotional damage is most likely much larger than the piles of soaked belongings lining the streets.

Not only are individuals who’s homes were flooded are working this weekend, but friends, family and strangers have come together to help with this process. And there are so many people who have stepped up to volunteer at the shelters and organizations needing as many hands as they can get, including the Houston Food Bank and the SPCA.

And, y’all, I could not be more proud to be a Houstonian and an American this Labor Day Weekend. The way so many people have come together has been so amazing to see. In my opinion, there has been so much divisiveness recently and, although this devastation was horrendous and I wish it didn’t occur, it shows how much we all can come together to support each other in the worst of times. LOVE WINS, Y’ALL!! Every time.

One of my hopes and prayers is that we all can learn from these past 10 days and view every encounter with love. How can we help to build each other up? How can we overcome our differences? How can we be a better neighbor, friend, significant other, daughter, brother, etc? If we all starting bringing compassion, empathy and love in to every situation, could you imagine what we could accomplish?

The road to recovery is going to take years and, ultimately, support for those affected with eventually start to die down. Unfortunately, it’s the out of sight, out of mind mentality that happens with all major events. It’s no one’s fault – it just happens. I am extremely fortunate to have this platform and all of you who decide to stop by and I want to do as much as I can to help those affected, so I’ve placed a link to JJ Watt’s Hurricane Harvey Relief Fund on the right side of my blog and would like to commit that any money I make from SGSB this September (from sponsored posts, affiliate link commissions, etc.) is going to be donated to that organization to help those affected. If you feel so inclined, you can click the DONATE button on the photo and it will take you to the YouCaring site to donate. I also put together a post last week with some other ideas on how we can give back to those affected.

And last, but not least, thank you all for the love and support the past week and a half! I appreciate the calls, texts, DMs, emails and comments with your thoughts for myself and my family. I can’t even begin to put this appreciation into words. Lots of love to all of you!