TALKING DOESN'T MAKE A DIFFERENCE... DOING DOES.

We all know that our world is not a perfect place. We see inequality all around us. We see injustice done every day. Homeless in our streets. Children dying of starvation. We rant about these things every day. Usually we complain about how these things affect our lives and inconvenience us. Sometimes something terrible happens and we all fill our Tweets with rage, "something MUST be done"!

Recently a prominent Canadian public figure has been accused of abuse toward women and social media has exploded with people arguing about it. Will that stop violence against

women? Will the discussions bring about changes in our society? No. Some other great injustice will happen and the world will shift the discussion. No-one will be talking about today's outrage tomorrow. Sad fact, the only way that change really happens is when people get off their keyboards and actually DO something.

 Let me introduce yet another Canadian actor that doesn't just spout off on social media about the things that need changing. She goes out and makes change happen. One of those people that actually believes all the crap about making the world a better place, one smile at a time. You know the type... or maybe you don't. I know I had never actually met one myself. They are pretty rare, and pretty special.

There I was, driving down the highway one afternoon, when I heard an interview on a popular, international radio program. A young woman in Toronto spoke about an initiative that started in Cape Town, South Africa, almost a year ago. She described a simple way to help bridge the gap between those with and those without. A "Street Store", it was called. http://www.thestreetstore.org Pretty simple concept. Get 'those with' to donate stuff they don't wear any more and give it to 'those without'. Sure it has been done before, but not like this.

One of the hardest things about being one of those without is that you are not just without the "stuff", but you also are deprived the dignity that the rest of us take for granted. Imagine the young mother with two kids that will need new winter clothes this fall. She can buy groceries, pay the rent or buy the clothes they need. Try to put yourself in her shoes. Pick one option. You can't. No one should have to make that choice. Now imagine that you can't afford any of those choices. The children are looking to Mom to provide for them and children aren't stupid. They can see it in Mom's face. Get the picture...

Now what if that mother could take her children shopping this weekend. Go to a place where the attentive sales staff help her and the children find just what they need to stave off the cold. Maybe even find a cute new dress for the six year old girl. Her first. And how about an awesome pair of kicks for the eight year old boy. something that will make him feel pretty cool the next time he's at the park with his buddies. Then the staff helps Mom find something nice that she can wear to that interview that will propel her into a better job. What is the bill for all this? Nothing. It is FREE. The hot coffee at the door. The doughnuts. The bag of clothes. All of it, free. Even the gift bag with some goodies that Mom didn't even think she needed, until she looked inside. What do the children see in Mom's face today?

I listened to the interview. I couldn't help but be moved by the passion for others that would drive an individual to not just WANT to make that difference, but to actually go out and DO it. Of course the hero of our story couldn't possibly make all this happen on her own. This amazing women has some equally amazing friends. She enlisted a group of like minded Toronto artists and an army of volunteers to help launch Toronto's first ever Street Store.

In less than a month this group managed to get people, from all across the country, to rummage through their closets and completely fill an inner city church basement with everything from socks to winter coats. Piles of baby clothes, women's dresses and a stack of sweaters that nearly reached the ceiling. Weeks of sorting and organizing ended in a day that will be remembered forever by the people they touched.

I happened to be making a business trip to Toronto the week following the big event. I tried to arrange my travel to get a chance to see the store in action. Didn't work out as well as I would have liked. I arrived that evening. By the time I got to the church, everything was gone. The only people left were a few homeless folks having a small gathering in the sanctuary. I tried not to interrupt their worship but they beckoned me inside. I was a stranger in their church but I was instantly welcomed. Some of the people I spoke with were recipients of the kindness brought forth by the volunteers that had swarmed the church. The emotion in their voices made it clear that something pretty special had just occurred.

It is said that the greatest thing that any of us can do is to do something for someone that can never thank us. I am pretty sure that all the self-righteous babble that you are posting about whatever great calamity we are raging about today won't do much of anything for anybody. I am also pretty sure no one is reaching out to thank you for your opinion. All the Tweets and Facebook posts on the internet today or tomorrow or the next day will never have the impact that these few wonderful people had. They got off their keyboards and did something. The rest of us should learn from the people that DO things instead of talk about doing things. If I learned anything... It is this. If all we are going to do is Tweet and Facebook and blog, then let's put some keystrokes toward thanking those that DO the things that REALLY matter.

It was bitter cold as I walked back to my hotel, only a few blocks from the church. Along the way, I spotted one elderly gentleman, sitting in a doorway of a derelict building. He was wrapped in a heavy coat with a blanket wrapped around his legs. I have no idea if the clothes that sheltered him from the November wind came from the Street Store, but I am pretty sure he didn't dig that bright red wool hat out of a dumpster. He looked up at me as I walked by, and smiled.

I have some new heroes in my life.

Thank-you to the Toronto Street Store volunteers and organizers. Thank-you to ALL the DO'ers, everywhere.

SINCERELY...