Keep Your Garden Green

• Plant some bamboo. Bamboo contributes to the balancing of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
• Don’t use a leaf blower. The horrible noise is reason enough to avoid these machines. Compost instead, and never burn leaves!
• Plant a garden using xeriscaping-no water needed. Find out more at ecolife.com/garden/natural-lawn/xeriscaping.html.
• Capture rainwater for gardens.
• Fertilize with grass clippings.
• When watering your garden, turn on the water early in the morning to minimize evaporation.
• Try not to fertilize before a storm to avoid the fertilizer being washed away.

A Litter of Love

    June is the ASPCA’s Adopt-A-Shelter-Cat month. Millions of cats roam our streets. Some are looking for a kind person to take them in and give them a new home. This population swells at this time of year since shelters are overflowing with all the kittens born during the springtime. Shelter cats make excellent companions. However, just as cats give people love and companionship, humans need to care for their cat and provide her with an appropriate loving home. Careful research and planning is the key to adopting the right cat for your family, since adopting one should never be an impulse decision and indoor felines can live up to 20 years.

The Gift of Listening

    Listening is one of the greatest gifts you can give anyone. As humans we all want to be heard, so start by listening a little more each day. Listen to your children, your spouse, your friends, even the Chitty Cathy in your office. You, in turn, will be repaid by being listened to with far more attention and care.

Pay It Forward

    Stop for a moment and think of someone who needs a gesture of kindness. Perhaps it is something king that someone once said to you. With gratitude for what was given, reach out and give back. It can be a simple gesture, like sending a card, or calling someone who is sick and saying you care. You may well recall the movie or book, but if you want ideas and to connect to other kindly folks, go to payitforwardfoundation.org. Pay It Forward is all about people, from all walks of life, giving to others and making a positive difference. At last count, there were more than 500,000 people in 60 countries around the world participating. 

Love Your Mother

    Mother's Day may be over, but it's never too late to keep celebrating. Make your mother feel special and loved by taking her out to lunch or a masked-up mani/pedi. For your friends who may have lost their mother, check in with them as it may have have been a hard day two days ago. Mother's Day is all about love, so spread it around far and wide going forward.

Top of the Mornin'

    One of our fabulous interns here at Viva Editions,  Sara Wigglesworth, has a lovely way of saying "Good morning" upon arriving that ensures that it will actually be a better morning. I have to admit that greeting coworkers sometimes slips my mind, so it's helpful to be reminded of the power that a simple, well intentioned, and sincere greeting can have. It is a wonderful way to start the day with elegance and ease.

Spread Kindness without Care

Start a chain of kindness around you. 

Buy your copy of "Random Acts of Kindness" by Brenda Knight and Becca Anderson now on mango.bz: https://mango.bz/books/random-acts-of-kindness-1484-b 

National Pet Day

    If you have a pet, make sure you give them attention every day. Even if you can afford to only spend ten minutes with them, that time is enough to show them that you care and to make them feel loved. Pets need love as much as people do. The responsibility of caring for your pet's life includes dedicating time and affection toward them.

Sharing Your Strength

    The I worked on the Random Acts of Kindness project, we looked around for places to donate profits from the books and Share Our Strength came highly recommended. It reminds an organization I deem to be a real good in the world. Did you know one in five children live in a home that struggles to put food on the table? Join SOS' campaign nokidhungry.org so we can take care of those who need it most.