In 'Our Town', by Thornton Wilder, the 'spirit' of Emily Gibbs, homesick for life, wonders whether the living ever truly comprehend life while they're living it. And the Stage Manager, who can speak to the deceased - as well as to the audience - says, with some mild caveats, nope.

Nope, Emily, for the most part people don't understand how precious life is.

But after 7 years volunteering for the Hollywood Food Coalition, I would gently correct the Stage Manager, with apologies to Thornton Wilder, and say that the best way to comprehend life while you're living it is to help people in need.

Simple things, seemingly, make such a huge difference to people in need.

A hot meal. A good meal. 

Warm socks, a new pair of glasses, an opportunity to use the shower.

Advice, counsel, care.

If there's anything I have learned from volunteering for this amazing organization, which has been around for 37 years, it's that helping people in need, every day, reminds a volunteer - a guy like me - of how disconnected we can be from the value and importance of life's necessities.

We take so many things for granted that make life precious: breakfast, lunch and dinner, absolutely; the roof over our heads; warmth; clean clothing; being able to go to bed at night without worrying about whether you'll be assaulted or abused in your sleep. 

Knowing you're  heard, listened to, respected, honored.

There are lots of great organizations doing amazing work with people in need - both in our city and all over the world - so I won't pretend that our joint is inherently better than a gajillion other joints. But it's the joint I've come to know, and love, and cherish, and the place I've given 7 years of my life to helping support.

Your contribution will go a long way towards helping us continue our work, not only providing care for our own guests every night, but helping tons of other amazing organizations provide good, hot meals for their folks.

We share tons of food throughout the city, as y'all know, through a program called 'The Exchange', a program that the missus and I helped start in 2020, and which may be the single most important thing I've ever done in my life, and that even includes learning how to whistle for a cab and tie a cherry stem into a knot with my tongue.

I know we all get asked to do a lot during the holiday season, but if you can extend yourself to help The Hollywood Food Coalition raise some bucks on/around Giving Tuesday, it will mean a lot to a lot of people, and it would mean extra smooches in your smooch stocking from me this Xmas. (Yeah, yeah, 2nd prize is two weeks in Philadelphia . . . )

THANKS SO MUCH!