I just finished a week of fun and frolic with the grandkids, so this week’s Five Minute Friday prompt is right on.

Five Minute Friday, of course, is where most writers in the group write for five minutes on a specific prompt, then congregate and share at Kate’s place (http://katemotaung.com/2016/07/21/five-minute-friday-help/). It’s been awhile since I made Friday. Usually it’s Saturday … and sometimes, like today, it’s Sunday before I sit down and let the mind wander for five minutes.

At any rate, the prompt this week is HELP. The time is set, so it’s time to GO …

I think I’m pretty good at coming up with ideas, even executing them. But I definitely am not a planner. I can appreciate the beauty of the seat-of-your-pants, enjoy-the-moment approach to vacations. Pick a destination and let the rest just fall into place.

Planning. That’s not really a word in my vocabulary.

I’ll give you an example. I actually researched and planned dinner for after our whale watching experience. I checked out menus, made sure all the kids’ favorites were covered, even the gluten free. Didn’t check the hours. We went for dinner, the place was closed. Without a Plan B, we criss crossed the road — several times — in search of another eatery that could accommodate 14 of us, nine 16 or younger. It all turned out well with just as many choices.

My daughter, channeling her mother, however, and her friend were the ones who put the meat on the bones of this trip. They planned the campsite breakfasts, lunches, dinners and snacks, the downtime activities, the responsibilities {mostly theirs} and kept count of the 14 heads entrusted in our care. They were the HELP I needed — desperately. Had it not been for them {and my son} we may have … STOP

… spiraled into total chaos, starved, gone bankrupt {do you know how much kids eat? Especially teenagers?}, lost a few along the way or had more frowns than smiles … possible all of the above!

Thank you my sweets, for all you did to make my cockamamie idea a reality — not just this year but every year. My chaperones are the backbone that convert the idea into reality.

But then, we all need help and we all should be helping. That’s one of God’s commands as well. We should be in the business of helping, encouraging, supporting, reaching out, lifting up, getting involved. It’s the Christian thing to do. It’s the human thing to do. That doesn’t mean we have to do it all. We’re allowed to ask for help, too.

And it’s not just in this realm. I ask for help from above all the time. God always sends me angels to complement my — okay — deficiencies like planning. This week, Dee, Nikki and Jonathan were my earthly angels. And Mom was there smiling from the other side of the river.

Thank you all for your help.

THOUGHT TO REMEMBER: What if we gave until it hurt instead of just enough to look good.