Succor can be as simple as a hug.
Unemployment is at9.1% and the month of August showed exactly zero percent jobs created with the . And those are the government’s numbers. If you listen to the pundits who are looking for the real number it’s closer to 20%, talk to business people and ask them – it’s closer to 20%. That means that one in five people don’t have a job. That is a terrifying figure and it shows just how much succor is needed. The definition of succor is to provide help or relief for somebody or something in a difficult or unpleasant situation; somebody or something that provides help or relief.
The east coast is still digging out from the soaking it received from Irene. The gulf coast is getting a soaking from Tropical Storm Lee. Out in the Atlantic we are watching Katia spin herself our way. And that’s just the main big storms going on right now. It doesn’t include any of the other disasters that have befallen many. There are plenty of ways to provide succor at this time. For those who don’t have time, energy, or physical capability, there is always the option of donating funds to organizations such as the Red Cross, United way, or the local homeless shelter.
Another way to help is to volunteer. Go down to the local shelter and see what you can do to help. Check in with a veterans’ organization and see if you can help there. Want to make the choices yourself? Go to the store and buy a week’s worth of groceries and then drive them to the local food bank and leave it there. Check out websites like http://www.volunteermatch.org/ where they match what you can do with what people need volunteers for. Call your church, talk to a pastor and ask if there is a family that needs help.
Reaching out to help others is one of the best ways to make ourselves feel better! You get a lot of positive back when you go out with the intention of just helping. When you help someone else you tend to see how fortunate you are. When you help others you are creating a positive energy flow that can circle around the world. Even a kind word can do much to provide a certain amount of succor. Know your co-worker is having a bad day? Find something to compliment him or her on…his tie, her hair, the report he did, the prospectus she just finished, etc. Many times it only takes a small positive to turn a bad day around for someone.
The flooding left by Irene has destroyed or damaged hundreds of miles of roads alone. But when a friend reported her experience about driving around and seeing what the storm had done in northern New Hampshire was happy to report that on every turn she saw folks helping each other dig out, clear roads, provide food, find lost pets, sift through rubble and essentially just helping each other out any way they can.
In Texas where homes are being lost to wildfires you see the same. Neighbors helping neighbors get out with what is important! The lives of loved ones and the lives of those animals within their care. Working together they saved what they could, making sure to watch each others’ backs and helping out wherever they can.
Succor is providing aid and assistance to those is need. It’s rather plain and simple. There are a lot of people in need…reach out and take a hand…reach out and lend a hand…as Diana Ross sang “reach out and touch somebody’s hand, make this world a better place, if you can.”
