readout variant: Lenten Crafting Ideas- 10 Ways to Craft ?For Good?

For the Christian community, the next 40 days leading up to Easter are a sacred time- I time to reflect, grow, and recommit to God and spiritual practice. For me, Lent is a time not of deprivation, but of random joy. I choose to interpret Lent as a season in which I can spread kindness and the essence of ?Christian values? by the things that I DO. And if you know me, crafting is what I do. So why not combine the two?

Little tags and envelopes I?m sending out as RAK?s- Random Acts of Kindness.

So, I thought I?d share some of my Lenten craft ideas and practices? maybe you?ll get inspired. Most of these are Random Acts of Creative Kindness-(RAKs or RACKs)? just little things I make and send out to the unsuspecting. My hope is that the unexpected act of beauty will brighten someones day!

Random Acts of Creative Kindness:

Create little notes to slip to your kids, spouse, parents, friends. Tell them that they are beautiful, special, LOVED. Yes, you say it, but having it in writing is special. (See my post about Camp Cards to see what I mean.)
Make up a batch of cookies or candies, add a little tag that says, ?Because you?re sweet? and pass them out to crossing guards, lunch ladies, school custodians, bus drivers, postal workers, what ever?you know, those folks to improve our quality of life but we don?t usually take the time to say thank you.
Are you a cardmaker? Make cards to give away. Nursing homes and after-school programs regularly need cards for residents/participants to give to loved ones for special occasions.
Knitter? Make a hat. Or two. Or twelve. Somewhere near you, a chemo unit or a NICU (neo-natal) unit needs caps to keep those heads warm.
And in that vein?. use up your odds-and-ends of yarn to make striped scarves. Donate them to a men?s shelter, homeless shelter, group home, or even your closest school.
Are you blessed with abundance? Donate supplies. Nursing homes, hospitals, daycares (if the products are non-toxic) and even art therapists need art/craft supplies to make the lives of their clients richer. I bet you have something to spare.
Use up your fabric stash making lap quilts and baby quilts. Seniors in wheelchairs love pockets in theirs, too.
Make jewelry? Make 10 pairs of earrings, and sell them to your friends, family, co-workers for $10 each. Donate the proceeds to the charity of your choice.
Each one teach one. Share your skill! Teach someone to knit, crochet, embroider, sew a straight line, or master a wrapped loop. Trust me, someone out there would benefit greatly from the skills you take for granted. And moreover, someone would love the kind, nurturing attention that instruction brings.
Create little plushies or pillows and give them to the Red Cross or to the Child Life Department of your local hospital. Often, in times of catastrophe, kids lose their stuffed animals, blankets and ?lovies.? It?s a small way to comfort someone who might have lost everything. In my own experience, my daughter (then 2) had to be rushed to the ER for stitches. To calm her, they gave her a little pillow to hold and squeeze when she felt scared or in pain. She?s 7 now, and STILL has that pillow. It made all the difference.