The first time I watched the video below, my heart broke. It just broke. Because this happens. This is real.

This should not ever, ever, ever be real.

So in February – a month where we talk of love and valentine’s – I want to highlight Love146. Consider creating or joining a task force in your area. Donate to prevent it. Donate to provide aftercare.

Learn more.

Some days I find myself overwhelmed with my wish to do more to make the world a better place. I think about how I wish I could donate more, volunteer more, BE more. Some days I find myself exhausted at just the idea of need in the world. Some days I want to throw my hands up because in the great scheme of things I can never, ever, ever make a large enough impact.

And today when I’m frustrated with my limits, I found this:

What an amazing reminder and call to do something even when we can’t do everything.

What’s a small thing you can do to make the world better today?

One of my favorite things about the blog world is the way we can band together to support a cause, help a friend, and get the word out about a need. This year I wanted to help harness that power by sharing a different non-profit or simple way to make a difference in the world we live in each month.

Whether I’m talking about charity:water, Love 146 or the National Marrow Donor Program, I’m going to ask you to join me in doing one small thing to make the world better.

If you can, great. If you can’t, that’s okay too. But this month I want to ask each an every single eligible person to do this. Every last one.

While I’ve been fortunate enough to never have a loved one suffer from a disease that would require a marrow transplant, I know that almost 70% of people who are in need of one don’t have a family member that is a match. So this month, I’m highlighting the National Marrow Donor Program. Because you could be that match. But if you aren’t on the registry – they don’t know – they can’t find you – and they can’t perform a possible life saving transplant.

Do you know how easy it is to be on the list? I registered online. I spent less than ten minutes filling out a questionnaire. I got a kit so that I could swab my cheek and send in samples. It was free (though you can certainly donate – it costs about $100 to process a registration). Painless. And maybe someday I’ll be the 1 in 200 called upon to help someone. There is absolutely no excuse for not registering if you are able.

Join.

Peanut butter is my most favorite protein. Sure, a medium rare, dry aged tenderloin is pretty amazing but peanut butter is affordable, tasty, and most importantly versatile. In fact, let me list all the foods that I’ve paired with peanut butter with in the last few weeks which has resulted in amazing deliciousness:

chocolate
jelly & toast
pretzels
apples
celery
banana
saltines (this was my favorite college dinner)

It’s also a very popular item on food pantry shelves because as protein goes -it’s shelf stable and pretty economical. But did you know peanut butter (along with many other foods) are facing steep inflation? Because of a bad peanut crop, the cost of peanut butter has increased any where from 20-40%!!

My point? Because of the price increase, food pantries aren’t receiving it as often as they once were as people are opting to donate other (cheaper?) items. So, if you can find it in your heart (and budget), please pick up an extra jar on your next grocery shopping trip and drop it off at your local food pantry.

And tell me – what is your favorite food to pair with peanut butter?