It’s friggin’ 12 degrees outside. So, let’s talk about towels.

I have monthly appointments for a manicure and pedicure, a massage and a facial. Either I’m a woman of a certain age who is trying to take care of herself. Or, I’m a pampered diva with spendable income, who enjoys being taken care of. Either way, I have wonderful professionals who are amazing at their jobs.

The common denominator with all of these treatments is warm towels. My nail specialist massages my feet and legs and then wraps them with warm towels and then rubs them with hot rocks. I’m here to tell you—that is pretty heavenly.

The facialist uses at least twenty hot towels as she applies different products and then gently wipes them off. I would not want to be in charge of her laundry.

During my massage, a warm towel is placed on my back after she has poked and prodded me to the point of tears and then, at the end, she wraps a warm towel on my face and leaves me to lay there for a few minutes as I collect myself to get off the table.

What is it about warm towels? They comfort, relax and hug and make you feel special and cared for. Warmth is such a unique, healing quality. When my father was in the hospital over the holidays, the nurses would bring him warm blankets to snuggle in. I have no idea how you code “1 blanket, warm” on the hospital bill, but it was as therapeutic as any of the medications they administered.

As I was laying on the massage table the other day, I started pondering this concept. It’s dark, zen music is playing and she’s going about her business of busting up all the knots in my shoulders, so I had some free time to think.

Perhaps we could all use more warm towels, in the esoteric sense. Perhaps we should all strive to be warm towels for others. We are a nation divided over religion, race, policy and politics. We are all set in our determinations and dogma and find the other side to be unbelievable, unreliable and untrustworthy. There are cold chasms over which it is almost impossible to build bridges.

If I believe anything about my calling in life, it is to try to bring warmth and light to other people. That becomes more challenging when it is so hard for me to see their point of view or walk a mile in their shoes of experience. But, I also believe that that is the only thing that will heal our land. For each of us to find ways to be inviting warm towels for another person, regardless of their position, beliefs or party. The divisions can melt away when surrounded by the warmth of openness and effort and understanding.

I think the one true thing that our resources at InSight Books bring to people are warm towels. A person is sitting in the depths of despair and cold, dark nights of pain. Doug’s words say to anyone who reads them, “You are not alone. You will survive. This is normal. This can be endured.” It’s a warm towel wrapped around the places that hurt. It’s a way to find a path to healing. Maybe we should start putting a towel in when we ship a book order, to remind people that that’s what we are offering.

So, how can you be a warm towel in a pretty cold and hard world? Who needs to be embraced, hugged or included in the circle of warmth? How hard is it to share your towel with those who are difficult to reach? It’s something to ponder. And I would highly recommend that you go get a massage or a facial or a pedicure while you ponder it. It will make your day warmer, which you can pass along to someone else.

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Glenda Stansbury is Marketing Director of InSight Books and Co-Founder of InSight Institute Certified Celebrant Program. She is also a speaker, a trainer, and an observer of life, and one of Doug Manning’s adorable and talented daughters. You may email Glenda at OrdersAndInfo@InSightBooks.com.