Not Forgotten
Yesterday was the birthday of a college friend of mine who passed away ten years ago to liver cancer. I took a moment to write a letter to her sister reminding her that my friend was not forgotten and that she and I had enjoyed a wonderful friendship during our college years. Though her life was relatively short, I wanted her sister to know how much she had given to me and the legacy she left.
- Posted by bleibyog
- Jan 27, 2014
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Roses
Yesterday and today I cut a few roses from our bush out front; after arriving at work (I work at my church's preschool/day care) I gave random parents a beautiful red rose. Today as I pulled into the parking lot a woman from a house next to the church approached me, she asked if I could call the police and see if they would be able to help her get into her house. Her husband had left for work 3 hours earlier and had accidently locked her out. The police said they could not help her so she asked if she could call her daughter, I handed her the phone again. After talking to her daughter she said thank you and I handed her one of the roses I had cut today. She just beamed and said I made her day! It feels so good to help others!!
- Posted by wendy82298
- Jan 26, 2014
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Little Old Lady ~ ; )
As I was walking towards the Safeway grocery store entrance, there was a very small old woman (about 60 lbs) with her small metal rolling basket filled, going towards the side walk...she was soooo frail & small & was obviously having a hard time walking...it was about 85-90 degrees out. At first I was afraid to approach her, I didn't want to scare her. But, thinking of the act of kindness project I just joined, gave me the courage to ask her if she would like a ride. She said "oh yes, that would be nice!". She had been in a nursing home due to a hip injury for several months. She has no family, so I gave her my phone number, and we made plans for weekly trips to the grocery store, and of course what ever else she needs. How magical is that!!! I have a new friend!
- Posted by tiner.designs
- Jan 25, 2014
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Just A Little Bit Of Butterscotch
My friend A was dying of breast cancer. We knew it, but we didn't know she would descend so rapidly. Her husband, H, called to tell me she was in the hospital. I spent as much time with them as I could in the next couple of weeks. I held her hand and read her Rumi's poetry until she fell asleep. I swabbed out her mouth with a wet sponge and helped where I could, but my most important contribution was supporting H. This was the second wife H was losing to this horrible disease. He was valiant and selfless, but I could see that he was troubled. H is a very quiet man and isn't prone to complain. I gently probed. Near tears, finally he said, "Well, I just feel so badly that I didn't have the house ready so she could die at home. I didn't expect her to fail ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by coachbobbie
- Jan 23, 2014
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52 Gifts For 52 Years
Today is my 52nd birthday and it just so happens that there are 52 students in the little school where I teach. So I was inspired to give a gift to each of the students in the school to celebrate that "52" connection. I took a brand new deck of playing cards and with some help from my daughter last night we made a playing card bookmark for every student in the school by adding a bead and a red ribbon to each card. Coincidentally I have 13 students in my class so they will each get one of the hearts. I can't wait to share these as part of my special day :)
- Posted by jcdery
- Jan 22, 2014
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In The Neighborhood
Found out that an elderly woman in our neighborhood recently lost her spouse after a long illness. Even though we didn't know them well (and they didn't join much in neighborhood activities), took over some flowers and a card for the family. Her son (whom I had never met) was really touched and spoke to me for a long time. I was glad to be there.
- Posted by cabbage
- Jan 21, 2014
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For Us And Them.
A friend and I decided to go for a vegetarian dinner today. We went to a nearby restaurant run by a beautiful lady, who is really warm and kind. We ordered our food, which turned out to be delicious and light as usual, and we enjoyed our meal so much. We were being kind to ourselves by eating simple, nutritious, food cooked with care and love. However, there happened to be SMILE cards on my person and another greeting card, so we decided that this was a great opportunity to be kind to someone else too. We had a hush hush chat with one of the lovely people who were serving us, and pointed,winked,gestured at the couple sitting at the next table, and told him that we wanted to pay their bill. He agreed, and my friend wrote out a beautiful card for them, and we attached a SMILE card as ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by 11888
- Jan 21, 2014
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Sandwich Therapy
Last night, I was waiting in line to place my order at a fast food place. The lady just ahead of me was taking a long time to order and asking the cashier many questions about the options. That slowed us all down, just enough for me, who seldom notices what people wear, to notice that she was dressed like a person who has been living on the street. Maybe she was homeless and was having a hard time placing her order in a place with limited choices on the menu because this was already more choice than she had ever had in her life. I saw this as an opportunity and walked up to stand near her by the cashier. When she had finished ordering, I asked her if she would mind if I just paid for her sandwich. She looked at me and asked, "you want to pay for my sandwich? ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by Ammi
- Jan 20, 2014
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Compliment game
On my last day at my summer job, I wanted to do something nice and let my lovely colleagues know how much I appreciated them.
So I suggested that we play a compliment game during the coffee break. I had brought small heart-shaped cards, all of which had one positive adjective. I spread the cards on the coffee table so we could read the words. One of us closed her eyes while all the others chose one card for that person, which describes her.
Then she could open her eyes and one at a time we all could tell her the word we chose for her and the reason why we thought she was helpful/inspiring/whatever the word was. We did this to all of us so everyone got to praise others and also got to hear positive feedback about him/herself. After this simple game I could feel huge amount of positive energy in our workplace and everyone was really happy and touched.
This game is easy to make, just cut some papers and write positive adjectives on each and get started. I truly recommend :).
- Posted by IhanaElama
- Jan 20, 2014
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A Helping Hand
I had gone today to complete some unfinished business . It was a hot, sunny afternoon. I parked the car and was walking towards to my destination, when from a distance I saw an elderly man walking towards me in the opposite direction . As we came close, I saw that he was walking slowly, in measured steps and there was a look of pain on his face. He was not feeling comfortable, that I could clearly see. I glanced at him and then moved on, wanting to go quickly and complete my unfinished work. I soon reached my destination,completed my work and was returning to where the car was parked , when again from a distance I saw the same man sitting on the road .I quickly walked across to where he was sitting. I bent down and saw that he was tired and exhausted. I was concerned and asked ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by sethi
- Jan 19, 2014
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Give Kindness To Your Enemy
Today I left a bag of gourmet coffee on a coworkers desk to brighten her day. I attached a Smile card and left is anonymously. Her and I don't see eye to eye all the time, but I felt it was the right thing to do, to pass kindness onto someone you may not realize needs it. She still doesn't know it was me and our boss encouraged her to pass on the smile card with another act of kindness. :)
- Posted by Cmiller0623
- Jan 18, 2014
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An Apple A Day Keeps Sadness At Bay!
In my 5 months of stint at South Africa I met many lovely people.
One of them was Christine. She was an aged (in her 60's) house help at the hotel I was put up at. She was doing a great job helping me maintain my otherwise messy room! Although she was getting her monthly wages I thought she deserved a personal "thanks". Every morning before leaving for work I would have a colloquial chat with her about herself and her family. I learnt that she loved apples and that her grand kids loved chocolates (Not surprising!) So at least once a week I would leave an apple and some at the table with a 'Thank you' note.
The day i left SA she gave me a big hug and said "I love you and I will miss you" I had tears in my eyes as that was my 1st 'I love you' in many years. She loved the juicy apples I kept for her. I was glad I was able to provide someone something that they love! And guess what? I got loved in return! :)
- Posted by RayOfHope
- Jan 17, 2014
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Hotel Door Tag!
Couple of weeks ago, few friends and I had an opportunity to attend a dear friend’s wedding in New York. After the wedding and reception, rather serendipitously four of us gathered in a hotel room and began to explore the deeper meaning of life and death. What does it mean to live authentically? If we are all getting closer to death, is all the material accumulation worth it? Not exactly the type of conversations one has at a wedding. ☺ While the answers varied from person to person, I was left with more questions than answers and a feeling of gratefulness to be surrounded by friends who were asking the ‘right’ questions. As the clock kept ticking past 3 am, one of the roommates suggested we watch a short film titled, “Last Days of Zach Sobiech.” The premise of the film is about a teenager’s journey through the last days of ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by bwawili
- Jan 17, 2014
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Traveling Kindness Notes
A couple months back, a few friends had driven me to the airport. Little did I know that on the whole ride there, two of them were writing quotes and uplifting messages on post-it notes in the backseat. :) When I arrived at my destination and opened my luggage, I found post-it notes of inspiration tucked all over my clothes and belongings! :) And-- they had scattered them inside my backpack as well! So for the next month, I would randomly pull out a smile-inducing sticky note when looking to grab a pen or some chapstick. I ended up sticking all these notes on the wall next to my bed, as a daily reminder of the tremendous joy that can spring forth from such a small gesture of love. Today, two months later, I wanted to spread some kindness around my neighborhood in honor of an elder's birthday. He's someone who has given ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by smileswithhope
- Jan 16, 2014
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To My Surprise!
Well I decided to cut my front lawn today, especially since I live on a main street downtown with lots of traffic. Anyway, I finished mine and decided to cut my neighbors grass while I was at it. She is a sweet person who has gone through some trying times in the last year. Her brother passed away of cancer last year, her sister (who lives with her) is mentally challenged--yet so sweet! Had a difficult time with physical and mental challenges which led her employer our local hospital to let her go after 25 years of service! Lastly, my neighbor who is a nurse on the cardiac floor of our local hospital was diagnosed with esophageal cancer in December, she went through radiation and a long recovery---but thankful she is in remission. Anyway, in short I was leaving my house this afternoon and she stopped me to thank me for cutting her ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by crakes3
- Jan 15, 2014
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Petrol
I was fueling my car, as the cost of petrol has gone to $1.57 a litre.
When I finished fueling I paid for my fuel and left behind a kindness card with a $10 note with instructions for the cashier that she should use it for the next person that came along that looked like they needed it!
I asked the cashier to pass on the kindness card.
- Posted by GypsyNurse
- Jan 14, 2014
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Healing Through Hugs
“We hugged, now we’re friends, right?” he asks as he takes my hand and leads me up the steps to the Lincoln Memorial. I’ve never offered Free Hugs at a March before, but decided it might offer the smallest bit of healing at the March for Justice in Washington DC on August 23. It was an impromptu decision. My friend Sarah accompanied me. Honestly, we weren’t sure how to best offer the Hugs. So we simply walked, We walked among thousands of people all searching for the same thing; Healing and Hope. Free Hugs signs overhead, we walked through the throngs of people. We smiled. Made eye contact. And the response was overwhelming. Hundreds of people accepted hugs as we made our own March in a sea of people winding their way across the Mall. It was heart-expanding to not only share hugs but to hear people’s comments: “Best sign I’ve seen ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by bubblehugfairy
- Jan 14, 2014
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Aren't Smiles The Best Instant Gifts?
I have recently developed this habit of waiting an extra few seconds to look out for others who may want to take the elevator up. Today there was a person who appeared just when the doors were closing and I hit the "Door Open" button on the elevator and greeted him with a smile. He was overwhelmed and said - "Its not often that you see smiles & kindness like this around here". It was both disheartening as well as fulfilling to hear those words. I hope this inspires him pass on his smile to the people he runs into today.
After all aren't our smiles the easiest & most instance gifts we have to share at any moment?
- Posted by deepaa
- Jan 11, 2014
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Blessed X 3
As my Daughter and I parked in front of our local grocery store, under the eaves in front of us was a homeless gentleman and his dog. I had decided upon entering the store that the least I could do was buy lunch for the gentleman and food and water for his dog. While at the checkout I noticed the man in the store trying to calculate what he could get with the change someone had given him while I had been inside. My first thought was I know who is watching his dog (a large pit bull). Sure enough as I exited there was my very shy daughter…keeping an eye on and playing with his dog. The gentleman came out shortly after me and was surprised to see that he had lunch waiting, and that I had already fed his dog. He thanked both of us while explaining that he hadn’t always ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by Pamala
- Jan 10, 2014
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This Is Really Great!
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Leaving Paris, I had no more use for my mobile SIM card, which still had quite a bit of talk-time on it.
So, after checking-in for my flight, I made a detour to the Arrival area, where I found a just-arrived, almost-elderly couple making enthusiastic enquiries in English at the Information Desk. I asked if they'd like my SIM card and talk-time.
The man replied, "We had just a moment ago asked where we could buy one." "Now you have one," I said, handing his wife a small, cellophane envelope containing the SIM and a Smile Card. "Wow," he said, "this is great!"
She removed the Smile Card and started to examine it as I turned to head-back to the Departure area. "Hey," she called after me, "THIS is REALLY great!" I simply kept-on walking, grinning as broadly as I hoped they were.
- Posted by anonymous
- Jan 10, 2014
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