Open Letter From Rikki Lee Travolta
Monthly Travolta Commentary</head>
Dear Friends,
The other day I was driving along when rain started to drizzle down. It wasn’t that kind of light rain that would stay sprinkles. It had been storming over the past few days and this rain looked to grow into yet another storm. The sky was quickly growing dark – well beyond gray. The raindrops were steadily increasing in size and frequency. If the previous days’ rainstorms were any indication, within minutes we’d have almost zero visibility.
Just then, I noticed an elderly lady waiting at the bus stop. It wasn’t a covered bus stop – in fact there was no coverage at all in sight. From her little cart filled with groceries from a nearby store, it was obvious she had gone out to do her weekly shopping not expecting to get caught in the rain. Recognizing the coming storm she had consolidated some of her groceries into one paper bag so she could try to hold the now empty plastic shopping bag above her for cover. It wasn’t working, and the rain had just started. It surely wouldn’t work in the coming storm.
So, I pulled over. I got out of my car into the rain and gave the woman my umbrella. She cried as if nobody had ever done something like that for her.
When I got home, I didn’t go directly in the house. I couldn’t., I too was crying. You see, what I left out of the story is that the first thing I did was offer the woman a ride home. And although she appreciated the offer, in today’s society you can't just get into a stranger’s car – no matter how respectable they may appear.
I cried because of what our society has become – the fact that we can’t trust each other. I cried because of all the traffic on that road, I was the only one who stopped to offer assistance. I know, because after giving her the umbrella I pulled around the corner and watched to make sure she got on the bus safely. I cried because in all her years, nobody had ever done something like that for her.
I wasn’t crying because I don’t know what’s wrong with society. I was crying because I do know.
If I can ask one thing of you – as my friends, as my family – it is that you don’t be afraid to help each other, to care about one another, to show compassion to others whether they are your best friend or a total stranger. Give it a chance – not just once in a while, but as a way of life.
PEACE LOVE TRUST
rikki lee travolta
Review other RLT commentary
It's All Relative
Stand Against Racism
Writing About Life
Crazy Pants Travolta
Gregory Hines
Everwood
Book Excerpt: Bus Fare
Learning to Stand
A Time of War
Country Charm
Talking Frankly About Family (& Christmas)
My Fractured Life
Forever Love
Good and Evil
Man Behind the Wheel
The Little Engine that Could: A Memorial
Perceptions of Perfection
Personal Decisions
Responsibility in Communication
You Done Good
Duality of Man
Evolution of a Hero
Reason to Quit - Stop Smoking
Beware of Stalkers
Dare to Dream
Do The Right Thing
Dealing with Abuse
Mother's Day
Right to Choose
Support the Cause
Just Try
Virtue of One
Martin Luther King Jr
Free Form Jazz
Creating the News
Great Expectations
Story of a Life
Acting 101
Why I Cried
Personal Values vs. Monetary Value
Broken Hearts
Dignity over Jealousy
Community Responsibility
Life, Honesty, and Integrity
Drug Withdrawal
Christmas Spirit
Rikki Lee Travolta's debut album!
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