This morning I woke up to an invitation from a neighbor (via social media) to our whole apartment community. We were invited to sing hymns from our balconies together, since Germany has suspended church meetings.

Inspired by the viral video of Italians singing out their windows across empty streets, our neighbor invited us to do something similar. I'll admit, I was conflicted a bit about joining. I didn't know all the words and worried it would feel like an awkward performance on my part.

But we gathered on our separate balconies and, as the singing began, I forgot all that. More and more neighbors spilled outside, waving as they joined in. A woman stopped on the sidewalk below us and listened, occasionally wiping her eyes. We ended up with nearly half of the balconies between two buildings filled with neighbors singing hymns together.

At a time of widespread fear, stockpiling, and mandated isolation, it's strange to find a silver lining amidst the empty shelves at the grocery store.

We have a neighborhood Facebook page, and today someone posted that they were self-quarantining due to a positive COVID-19 test. The first response on the post was, "How can we help you? Do you need anything from the store?"

Others have pooled resources in order to avoid shopping. Things have been gathered for children's birthdays, balloons have been crowd-sourced for a gender reveal, and everything from extra bread to unopened formula bottles to lunches for kids no longer in school has been offered. Then, it’s all been dropped off at a doorstep or central location to maintain social distancing.

Since I have friends all over the world on my Facebook feed, I can "watch" this happening all over the globe. We hear of friends buying gift cards to their favorite local restaurants so they don't go out of business, specifically the Asian-owned stores — many of whom are fellow expats — that are being avoided because the outbreak started in China.

The more of these encouraging posts I see on social media, the more I notice people doing the same acts of kindness around me.

While living overseas often feels very far away from all that's familiar at home, COVID-19 has reminded us of how connected the world really is. Issues and illnesses starting in one location inevitably spill over into others, no matter how hard we try to contain it.

That's why our roles as expats have never been more important. We're ambassadors, in more ways than one. Through social media, we can be a bridge between communities, bringing the good from one location to another.

We're a global community, and we need to help out when we can. Grounding flights and closing borders won’t stop all disease from spreading, but we will not let fear quench the acts of generosity and love. Let's continue to acknowledge and talk about the beauty we see in our community, and see how acts of service, selflessness, and kindness can also spread at an exponential rate.

Then, invite your neighbors to do the same. Maybe we’ll see your neighborhood on a viral video, giving hope to the world.

What acts of service have you seen in your community? What social media posts have inspired you recently?

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