Have you heard the Grimm tale “Stone Soup“? It’s a tale of travelers that, being famished, come up with an ingenious plot to get food. In doing so they create an air of mystery by starting their plot with a fire and placing a kettle, filled with nothing but water and a stone, upon it. As the townspeople come forth to question what they are creating they reply with the simple response, “Stone soup, but it would be more delicious if we had such and such ingredients.” As everyone in the town comes forth the soup has grown into a meat and vegetable soup, with a fairly hearty broth, that everyone shares. It is a tale of co-operation and compassion that provide all parties better off than they were as individuals.

It is a story that aligns very well with the depression and wartime era’s of the early 20th century. During these tough times, friends, family, and neighbors would gather what little they had and make hearty feasts to share with each other. This would provide them with more variety in the foods they were able to make and they were also connecting with each other.

Co-operation and compassion are key in tough times in keeping your communities strong.

There is no greater proof than David Armano’s assistance with his family friend, on Tuesday night. He used his personal capital on Twitter, friendfeed, and his blog to raise just under $15,000 for her in the past 24 hours. What this proves, is what we are all involved in on these social arenas is very much a community, nearly as real as that which we walk through each day. When we had raised $7,000 for Daniela, David created a video thanking everyone who contributed, with donations or spreading the word, but the thing that stuck out is he spoke of a feast with neighbors in which they would all cook everything when the power would go out and share with each other.

If one person can start an initiative to help another and raise that much in a day, what is stopping us from helping those that need it now more than ever. We have hit a period in which everyone is hurting, much like the depression and wartime eras. If we can share what we have with others to make our community better and also make connections what is the hindrance.

If we can share what we have with others to make our community better and also make connections what is the hindrance.