Stories of Kindness from Around the World

What Do I Have Enough Of?

What do I have enough of? I know it sounds odd, but I am happy, satisfied, blessed and grateful with all that is in my life. I have enough to share, enough to smile, enough to listen, enough energy to bring me through this day.

Oh, there is enough joy! There is joy in being alive and meeting the challenges of the day. I'm learning what the Lord has made it possible for me to learn today. I am so grateful.

Gratitude is like my "default" setting. I'm grateful for the sunshine out my window, the beauty of the green grass, the trees. All of life so lush, so deep in shadow and brilliant in light!

881 Reads
  • Posted by bienert.martha
  • Dec 31, 2014
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Today Is The First ...

Today is the first day we have ice on our pond and it seems like winter already with the snow on the pine trees. I mourn the passing of my summer flowers, but welcome the changing of the seasons. 

This is life...after losing a job I loved after 20+ years, being unemployed and now retired, I realize how fortunate I am to be able to live in this comfortable home, feed the birds, visit my friends, my kids and grandkids, buy a new car, even roller-skate at my age... I have everything I could possibly need, I am truly blessed.

724 Reads

Secret Santa

Last October, as I do every year, I set out to layaway a few things on my kids' Christmas lists. While in the past, the Christmas season has been a bit rough, the last couple of years, we have been blessed to be able to provide for our kids. Well, in particular, I had a layaway at a local KMart store, and had a balance left before pulling it out about a week before Christmas. So, I proceeded to pick up my layaway. Upon reaching the counter, I handed the clerk my layaway receipts and told her I was there to pay off the balance and take the items home with me. She grabbed my receipts, and kept messing with the computer as if something was wrong. My stomach felt a little uneasy, I was expecting her to tell me my layaway had been misplaced or something of the sort. Finally, after ... Read Full Story >>

1421 Reads

I Have Enough ...

Today, I am grateful to have enough of the main things. Enough health, enough love in my life, more than enough people who care about me and whom I care about. Enough children to make me giggle when I don't feel like giggling, enough of all the things I need to keep living a good life.

I have enough creativity which I enjoy sharing/teaching others with, and doing so makes me feel good.

959 Reads

Gratitude # 1

I feel so grateful for this platform. It has truly transformed my life. I find myself focusing more on things that I have than on things that I do not. Each moment I can choose to appreciate or complain about. The choice is mine.

This site has helped me to focus more on positives. So my first gratitude is towards this site. I am grateful for the founders of this site who came up with this simple yet wise idea and then I am grateful to all you Kind Springers who contribute so much kindness and love to this site. I am recharged reading comments and stories here. It is so therapeutic. Have a wonderful day!!!!

1444 Reads

Kindspring Grant : cards for veterans

At the Albuquerque, NM Veteran's Administration Hospital ("VA"), there are two units focused on long-term care: The Spinal Cord Injury Unit with 26 beds, and Unit 4D with 23 beds. Unit 4D houses long-term rehabilitation, palliative care and hospice patients. On any given day, there is an average of 22-24 patients in each unit. Many of these veterans, who range in service from World War II, through Korea, Vietnam, Afghanistan, Iraq and other areas of conflict, have no outside support. For various reasons, they receive no mail, and no visits from family or friends. Over time, by volunteering at the hospital, I’ve learned some of the reasons why these veterans are all alone. One is time and the expense of getting to the hospital. I walked in with a visitor who had driven 5 hours one way. He was lucky because he had a car and could drive. Some people are just ... Read Full Story >>

1331 Reads

It Is Enough

In my experience it can be heard just about anywhere that folks, "just can't get enough.........." you fill in the blank.

Indeed, we are like Kipling's Elephant's Child in that we are insatiable. Dieting people are told to eat slowly so that the stomach can signal the brain when it has reached its limits or maybe it is the other way 'round, but do we have a similar trigger to know when enough is enough?

Maybe it's a learned technique, but today it is enough that I roll my creaking bones out of bed and greet another day. I have the wherewithal to fix and enjoy a hot cup of tea and watch the fog roll off the bay. I have 2 beautiful children and 4 wonderful grandchildren who say without prompting that they love me. Today that will nourish and sustain me and that is enough.

1422 Reads
  • Posted by 47puffin
  • Dec 29, 2014
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Thank You

I'd like to comment on the act of kindness bestowed on me today. I was trying to cross the street of a very busy intersection that does not have a traffic signal.

Someone in a very nice SUV stopped - triggering a chain reaction for other cars to slow down and stop. It was the height of afternoon rush hour and I had been waiting at the crosswalk for a while before the car stopped.

The simple things really do matter, I could go on and on about what I did that was kind today, but I was extremely grateful for what someone did for me today.

1349 Reads

Blindided by KIndness

I had to report for jury duty today. As I waited for things to get started, I got in line at a little stand inside the courthouse to buy coffee. I noticed that each person in line was telling the clerk how much money they were handing him.

Then I realized the clerk is blind. He knew how to run the register and count out correct change, but obviously could not tell how much money he was being handed with each transaction.

I was touched that everyone was helping him and no one was taking advantage of him insofar as the money they were actually giving him. I left the remainder of my change in his tip jar. Very inspiring to see this.

2063 Reads

Food for the soul

I was walking home from work when a child came and begged for some money. He said he was hungry. So i took him to a nearby restaurant and told him he could have anything he wanted.

He was shy at first but when i urged him, he chose to have Parathas (An Indian bread) and Chicken curry to go with it. I asked him to sit down at a table and have the food, but then he said he would like it as a take away because he wanted to share it with a friend.

So I doubled the amount of food & made it a take away order. When i handed over the food to him, he grabbed it and ran without saying a word.

I paid up and went on my way, but had only taken a few steps before he showed up again, this time with his friend and they both gave me a huge smile. Not a word was spoken, but that smile made my day and filled my heart!

2393 Reads

​What I Learned From My 60 Deliberate Acts In 60 Days Kindness Birthday Challenge

For my 60th birthday, I challenged myself to do 60 very deliberate acts of kindness for 60 consecutive days and write about my experiences each day. Now I am no stranger to going out and doing things, but this is the first time I have ever been focused and paid attention to 'Kindness Acts' to the degree that was required in coming up with what I was going to do each day, preparing for it when I needed to, and then writing about it for 60 days Here is what I want to share. In my experience, there is no such thing as a 'kindness act' There is no separate 'act' that can be called Kindness. I believe our true nature IS kindness and that when we are not acting out of fear( which is what manifests as self interest, greed, material competition, and not- enoughness) we act out of love. In ... Read Full Story >>

5688 Reads

In My Late Twenties ...

In my late twenties I taught aqua-fitness for three years (three times a week). I was also teaching swimming to people afraid of the water. I had an amazing lady of 77 years old, that just began to love water at that age. It was beautiful to see her new love story with water as she was so scared of it for so many years before. I was also finishing my bachelor in psychology at that time and thought about the incredible positive psychological impact all that had in her life. It was beautiful to see her evolve in the water.... playing and having fun! She felt so good about her swimming,that she started to become more active. She used to run on the her roof top, begun to do yoga again and she fell in love with a new neighbor.... her eyes were twinkling! she told me it was like ... Read Full Story >>

3618 Reads

My Gas Station Story

One rainy evening I went to fill up at the gas station. A pre-teen boy approached my car with a thick hoodie pulled around his face. He asked me for money to help him and his mother stay in their hotel for an additional week. He stated that if they did not come up with $25 they would be evicted that same evening. Having worked in social services before, and being a little skeptical, I asked how come his mother hadn't sought out social services for assistance. The boy said that they needed to remain in their hotel for one more week until his grandmother, who lived out of town, could take them in. I gave the boy what I had - $5. He thanked me and continued to wander the parking lot asking for help. I got my gas and drove away. A separate time some weeks before, a boy asked ... Read Full Story >>

10.4K Reads

Of course you are. You're my friend.

This is something that happened a long time ago. I worked in a hospital and was often asked to talk with patients who were doing poorly emotionally. One young woman had a very poor prognosis even though at the present moment she didn't look that bad. When I went in to talk to her it became apparent that she was thinking about killing herself. I said that to her and she said, "Why not? While I can still do it." I said maybe what you're looking for is some peace and maybe there are some other ways to find it. I even tagged "maybe" on to that statement again. I won't go into all the details but she made an incredible turnaround in her attitude. I think I helped a little but she really did the work. But she was dying. One of the nicest things ever said to me was from her. ... Read Full Story >>

1822 Reads

Kindness And Appreciation

I tutor at a Catholic HS and today a student from last year stopped me to just give me a hug. A feel SO good surprise! You never really know the lives you may touch in your day to day activities. She gave me a lesson in simple appreciation and kindness. :)

1586 Reads

Breathing

Each individual plant is breathing in carbon dioxide, breathing out oxygen. Each individual animal is breathing in oxygen, breathing out carbon dioxide. In this way, we are all connected and dependent upon one another in the deepest sense, for breath, for life. We are each giving and receiving a vital gift to the other, the ultimate kindness. Taken as a whole, all the plants breathing, in and out, all the animals breathing, in and out, it's as if the earth herself is breathing. One in breath. One out breath. Perhaps she feels each heart beat as well, and her singular heart beats with the strength of each of ours. Today I will be kind to the earth. I will walk gently. I will honor all living beings. I will look to the trees with gratitude for the gifts they freely give, rather than with superiority simply because they are different from me. I'll ... Read Full Story >>

2466 Reads

Be Kind And Make Kind !

Children are the most beautiful beings on the earth! They are true examples of innocence, inspiration, energy and happiness.
Spend time with them, play with them, live with them and enjoy the happiness.
Be kind and make kind!

1628 Reads

Pay It Forward - three for one

When my husband and I go out to breakfast, we love to pick a young family or elderly couple to anonymously pay their bill and have the waitress hand them a smile card.

Everyone wins. We get to feel good that we did something nice, the person whose bill was paid is happy, and the waitress is excited with the pay it forward action. Keep kindness moving around!

914 Reads

The Gift of a Smile

This is a story of kindness given to me,its simplicity, yet its depth, and my gratitude for it.

On my way home from work one afternoon, I stopped by the grocery for something to fix for supper. I'd had a trying day and was feeling down and uninspired.

As I started round the corner of an aisle, I encountered an extremely short, elderly lady who burst forth with THE most beautiful smile imaginable,as she looked directly into my eyes!

This gift was so powerful, I found myself spontaneously smiling back; my spirits were lifted! I found inspiration for what to prepare for supper AND, I tracked that little lady down to tell her how she had "made my day".

The gift of a genuine smile is POWERFUL! This happened many years ago; but I'll never forget it and it has made me generous with my smiles as I pay-it-forward.

5673 Reads

Happy Faces!

In our class we have formed an NGO called "Recolectando Felicidad". We decided, for our second project, to spend time with kids from different schools. Instead of bringing them toys or material things we decided to play with them because we feel that playing with them, giving them love and making them smile was way more valuable. The class formed small groups, with three or four people each, to take care of the different games Our group  was in charge of the play dough modelling activities. The day before visiting "Rayo de Luz" (a local school for children with learning difficulties) we met up to make the dough. We used flour, water, salt and food coloring, to make sure the dough would be safe for children. We made 4,5 kilograms of dough in six colors: pink, teal, yellow, purple, black and white. The next day, we went to the school. We invited the ... Read Full Story >>

2268 Reads




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