Stories of Kindness from Around the World

Seeing Myself in Others

For the past few days a young adult, maybe in his late teens or early 20's, has been sleeping on a sidewalk in front of a Jack in the Box. In fact, every time I've driven by I've seen him there; one time he looked to be meditating. I've offered him a couple of drinks, from Starbucks one time and Jamba Juice the other. He's graciously accepted both, but he says very little. For the past two mornings I've been making him breakfast at my home and then dropping it off to him as he slept. This morning it was scrambled eggs with some veggies, along with hash browns. I added a You Matter card and left him a note just to let him know that someone cares for him. I hope to talk with him someday; hear his story. I was telling my own son about delivering this young man breakfast. ... Read Full Story >>

1770 Reads

Lessons from a Remarkable Co-worker

One of the women in my workplace recently retired. She had worked there 42 years, in different locations and positions, but all focusing on helping children. She is a remarkable woman and I will miss her. One of the things she did was share some thoughts that another woman had sent to her many years ago. I think they are important and am sharing them here with you all now. 1) Spend more time on the who than the what. What you do will always be less important than who you become. 2) Follow your heart. Pay far more attention to what YOU think than what everyone else thinks. 3) Develop a strong ‘maverick muscle.’ Be willing to bend the rules, learn how to disappoint others gracefully, get comfortable with people not liking you and always strive to be an original thinker! 4) Build your courage muscles. Starting tomorrow, practice doing one small thing ... Read Full Story >>

906 Reads

Gems 4.68 | Under1000skies

I hope you’re having a beautiful day. ♡ Here’s another light-filled ¤ Gem ¤ "This past Saturday my wife, Rebecca, was taking my son Jonah and a few friends put-put golfing for his birthday party. On the way there he saw a man with a sign asking for help. Jonah, feeling concerned for the man, immediately asked Rebecca to do something. She could read between the lines that it didn’t feel right to him that he’d be off celebrating with his friends while this man seemed unsupported…” -Ariel Nessel. Continued here: Jonah’s Birthday Wish by Ariel Nessel, on ServiceSpace.org ☼ Happy Birthday Jonah! ☼ Thank you for sharing from your heart on your birthday and, no doubt, every day. You are a very cool kid and an inspiration. ^_^ ♥. ♡. under1000skies ☼ A “Giftivism” Initiative ☼ We are photographers, writers, artists & advocates serving and connecting homeless creatives. ... Read Full Story >>

967 Reads

Not again! Finding Opportunity in Challenge.

It was the fourth frame that needed replacement, and as a way to teach my son a lesson, I decided to buy the cheapest one. However, even that was six hundred dirhams after discount. I bought the frame but deep within,my thoughts were for those who can’t afford and hence are deprived through no fault of theirs. That’s when an idea struck and just by coincidence I received a flyer on a parent’s what app group asking for old/spare/ rejected glasses for donations. The cutoff date was 20/6/2018 which is today. With full enthusiasm, I circulated the flyer to my acquaintances but a lot of questions were asked about permission to do the same and how authentic this was. This put me in doubt and in a way slowed if not marred my zeal. But if you set a pure intention the universe will conspire and make it happen. Yesterday, out of the ... Read Full Story >>

991 Reads

A Gift of a Denny's Meal for a Struggling Family

Occasionally, I will go to eat dinner at Denny's, but I had never gone on a Thursday night before, nor had I ever observed the people in the restaurant before. There was a mother with her twenty-something disabled daughter who appeared to have been brain injured in an accident. I could see that they had nothing and eating at Denny's was a big night on the town for them. As I watched the girl, I could see that she was functioning at about the four year age level. Nothing was going to change for them; it would appear that they would both be frozen in time for the rest of their lives. I grew up poor and now have a sufficient amount of money; so, I went back to the kitchen area, caught the waiter, and told him to charge their meal to me. Surely, this is the least I can do ... Read Full Story >>

945 Reads

Does Every Act of Kindness Have A Circular Path?

At times you never know who gets the most from a kindness, the giver or the recipient. The other day, a friend at work saw me rushing at the end of the day to get to my radiation treatment appointment. She gave me a big hug and she said she was sorry she had not been there for me all week.

I REALLY needed her hug that day! Later, after my treatment, I sent her a text message to tell her how very important that hug was for me and that she helped me get through that tough moment because of her kindness. Her text back to me--"Awww...You just made my ENTIRE week!" Little did I know that she too needed a hug and needed to be appreciated after a long and thankless week of hard work!

872 Reads

Donating My Hair to Little Princess Trust

I had almost all my hair chopped off so I could donate it to a charity called the Little Princess Trust. They make real hair wigs for girls and boys who have lost their hair (due to cancer treatment, illness etc.). My hair was roughly 35 inches long - I could almost sit on it! And now it's short and spiky. :)

Each wig costs £350 to make so I wanted to raise that amount so that I'm not just donating my hair, but also providing the money to have my hair turned into a wig. I'm getting close to my goal so wish me luck!

 

1082 Reads

Kindness Campaign

I am a teacher at the Spofford Pond School in Boxford, MA and we were awarded a grant from Service Space/Kind Spring. We used this money as part of our Kindness Campaign we are working on here at the school. We put this money towards two projects; one was the Books Without Borders project. We purchased books that will be sent to a school in Africa. Before sending the books, the students here at Spofford decorated the front cover of the books with Kindness messages and included Kindness bookmarks in each book. We also included a few Smile cards in the care package! We then used some of the grant money to create a Kindness Rocks garden here at the school! ... Read Full Story >>

1114 Reads

A Gift at the Grocery Store

Years ago, I was a house parent for emotionally and physically abused youth. These were children with histories of abuse that were almost unthinkable. We all went to the grocery store to get the essentials, but as it was close to Christmas, several of the kids grabbed extra things to make into presents, unbeknownst to me.

Well, when I got to the register, the house's $150 budget for food suddenly rang up as over $250. I asked the boys to put back their items are we could not afford it. Suddenly, a woman behind us handed the cashier a hundred dollar bill and said that no child should experience Christmas without a present. I thanked her profusely, and a few of the kids did too. It was a time that I was on the other end of the kindness counter.

989 Reads

Ripples of Kindless from Burritos for a Homeless Woman

Today I went out to run errands and in a corner I saw a woman in her thirties with a cardboard asking for help. I saw her and thought I'd do something about it. Instead of wondering "why isn't she working?" I decided that the answer is "God knows" and that I shouldn't judge.

I ran off to do my things and by the time I got to the counter at Taco Bell, I decided to give her food. I told the clerk I wanted to help a homeless lady and to double my request. The sum was a bit less than what I thought. He gave me two bags, as requested, but included a soda which I had not asked for, cinnamon dessert (not on my list), and in the other bag three burritos instead of two. Kindness rippled just then!

When I gave the woman the food, she blessed me. I was in tears to think there is plenty in this world for everyone to be fine. I did what I felt was right. Afterward, I saw another person give her money. No judgement, as everyone has their calling. Bless her and everyone like her.
 

1153 Reads

This is Love

Sometimes it is the witnessing of kindness and love has the most powerful effect. One time, while waiting for a procedure in the hospital waiting room, I saw something amazing happen. A man and woman were there together - the man was in a wheelchair, sunken, pallid, crumpled into himself. He had a bottle of oxygen next to him, and was sitting like someone who had had all his strings cut. Next to him, his wife had a little travel guitar out and was strumming softly. She started singing a song to him in almost a whisper, and he joined in. Their song was barely heard, but his visage changed. He seemed to be able to draw in a breath, and as they sang together, the light of life came back into his eyes. His head became erect, no longer hanging down. You could see his shrunken chest start expanding. This was a ... Read Full Story >>

1958 Reads

Gift From A Stranger To My Late Husband

I lost my young husband,Nitesh, who was 27 years old to cancer 3 months back. Nitesh had his start-up called Appeti.in which he had to shut down last year because he got diagnosed with terminal cancer. The start-up domain name was available on the market to buy. So someone called Sanjay, who has a start-up in similar domain bought it. After few days I got an email from Sanjay saying that "I bought the domain appeti.in and I realized that it belonged to Nitesh and it was his dream to run this company. So I would like to give this domain name to you as a gift". He mentioned that he was touched by our story and the heroic way we both fought with the disease, so he would like to gift me Nitesh's dream. And he offered to take Appeti to the next level in future if we want.  It takes  a lot of ... Read Full Story >>

1588 Reads

Being the $20 Angel in Disguise

I happen to be in Santa Barbara, California yesterday and was walking through town to take photos from the top of the bell tower in the courthouse. It was then that I came across an elderly, homeless woman. I could tell from the look on her face that she was not mentally stable. Seeing that this was the case, I quickly gave her $20. Usually, I will not give money to the homeless because it may be used on alcohol or drugs. However, in this case, I could see the difference and chose to do the kind thing.

When I gave her the money, the look of gratitude on her face was radiant. The $20 was nothing to me, but it was the world to her. Being observant on my part made all the difference for her. I have chosen not to believe in survival of the fittest, but rather in providing assistance for the least of these. There, but for the grace of God, go I. You never know when you will need an angel in disguise.

1026 Reads

Realization

Yesterday I went to a shopping mall to buy some new clothes for myself and just when I was about to enter I saw an old lady with disfigured hands calling me towards her.

At first I got scared but then I decided to go ahead and find out what she wanted. She was an old lady in her 80s and she asked me for some money. She said she hadn't eaten anything since that morning. At first I thought was she a con woman, but later I thought it's ok even if she is a con, I will still give her some money to eat.

I gave her money and she happily took the money and actually went to a food stall nearby and had her food.

Even though it was not a great donation from my side, it made me realise that we go shopping and spend money without thinking twice and then forget all about the shopping in few days. At the same time, there are people in the world who don't even have enough money to get a decent meal. I hope to continue to  spread kindness to the under priviledged in any way possible.

1101 Reads

Car Park Tidy

I scraped the weeds and earth from off the village car park surface back into the borders last night while waiting for Cubs to finish, which was a help to the volunteers who pretty up the village with their plants and flowers.
Then I litter-picked the recycling area. I got one or two strange looks, but continued regardless. I did get talking to one man who had left the village in the 60’s and had only recently moved back into the area and we got to talk about volunteering. Wish I’d taken a pic to show here. 

952 Reads

Always Time to Give

Ramadan is a time for giving back to the community, connecting and sharing love.

This Ramadan, I have decided to open my heart and do as much as I can. I've taken part in food donation, water donation, and clothes donation. Each day, I've stitched heartpins and given them to those people who've made a difference in my life. It has been a humbling and enriching experience.

I've been to labor camps and distributed items with my students and we've also spoken about giving in generosity and not as a ritual. It so far has been a blessed one and my spiritual journey has been much more meaningful. 

The most fulfilling activity was visiting an orphanage and stitching heartpins with the children. Three hours just flew by. Everyone wanted to try and the thrill at completing them is beyond expression. Some of the children asked if I was coming again and I do hope the same myself. :)

742 Reads

Having Fun Getting Others to Smile

I have had some fun while out and about today trying to accomplish the goal of picking someone unknown around me and trying to make them smile. I made it my mission to get as many people smiling as possible that I came into contact with while at the shops, library, local mall, and supermarket. I even danced to an S Club 7 song playing over the loud speaker as I walked to my parked car outside. My daughter was with me and I shared what I was doing with her she was very encouraging! It was a real eye opener; there was a certain amount of effort on my part to really engage with someone. However, just a smile from me and some pleasant, friendly words were all that was needed to get the smile started, and on one occasion I was having a good laugh about something with the shop ... Read Full Story >>

1410 Reads

The Gift of Desperately Needed Toiletries

i was walking into a drug store with my daughter one evening and there was a homeless man out front. He wanted money, but I told him I'd buy him anything he needed.

He asked for some tee shirts, a toothbrush and toothpaste, and some cleaning wipes. He was very, very dirty with matted hair and missing teeth. When I brought him his goods, he was so happy he pulled me into a huge hug.

My daughter was horrified worried that I might get lice or something, but I didn't care. It felt great to be able to give him something that someone probably hasn't in a long time: loving human contact.

789 Reads
  • Posted by jsbelzberg
  • Jun 29, 2018
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Music of Love

Hospice rang yesterday. An actively dying man had asked for harp music. I had to go to work, but rang after and he was still alive, still wanting the harp. I found him in a shared room. He was extremely emaciated, with long, wild grey hair, and the gentlest spirit shining out. I asked if he still wanted the music. He could not speak as he had a tracheotomy, but he clasped his hands and whispered, "The Harp! The Harp! Ooohhhhh." Someone had posted notes from those who cared for him all along the wall by his bed. His room mate turned off his TV. As I played, my patient drifted far away. His breathing was almost non-existent. I thought he would pass, but he wasn't there yet. I played for 1 and 1/2 hours and did not want to leave him, but my eyes, back and arms were beginning to tire.  When I finished ... Read Full Story >>

1437 Reads

Raising The Fallen Walking Stick For Grandma.

I met this elderly lady in town, I suppose that she may be someone's grandmother. The city has grown and everybody is so busy walking, and at times shoving other people. I am not sure what made me look at her as she walked slowly by with her wooden walking stick. Maybe it's because I wondered if I will reach that age, and what I would be doing then if I did? Suddenly, her stick dropped; I am not so sure if someone had pushed her or it just dropped accidentally. She tried reaching for it, but I noticed bending was becoming a challenge to her. I moved towards her, although I thought that someone would have already helped her by the time I reached her...I was wrong. Nobody seemed to have noticed or cared much. I picked up her stick and positioned it in her hand. She gave me a wide, ... Read Full Story >>

1544 Reads




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