Stories of Kindness from Around the World

Birthday Smiles For My Daughter

Today is my daughter's 24th Birthday.  I won't see her until later in the day, so I went to her classroom  where she teaches late last night and set up helium balloons and left cookies for her to share with her students. 

I know it'll make her smile when she arrives this morning :)  ...and they say  ... how you act on your birthday will be how you'll be all year long... so I think I've got her off to a good start!

Overwhelmed by Unexpected Loving Kindness

The car went through the stop sign and into the intersection. With no where to go or time to get there, my taxi hit the car dead on. For the next three months I was out of work. I had no savings to speak of. No family to help me. I was in dire straights to be sure.  The lady who ran the stop sign had little insurance, barely enough to cover the medical expenses with little left over to pay my living expenses. Just after the accident Justin came to see me in the hospital. We had been co-drivers with the taxi company. We knew each other and worked well together. We were not what one might consider to be friends but we liked each other. He asked me what was going to happen and I told him I didn't know. I was in deep trouble financially until a settlement ... Read Full Story >>

Chosing Our Reactions

  As I was filling my SUV at the gas station a car pulled up alongside the next pump over. They obviously weren’t having a good day and I could hear the father shouting at the son over something or other. Even as the father slid his credit card into the card reader he was still yelling. His son just sat there in the car, staring fixedly ahead. I glanced at the father and our eyes made contact. He looked at me for a few seconds and in a low gravelly voice he said, “What’s your d*** problem?” Let me tell you, many thoughts and words went through my head at that point. Precious few of them were kind. But I didn’t want to go that way. I continued to make eye contact with him, then I smiled and said, “Did you hear gas prices are going up again this week?” He looked at ... Read Full Story >>

A Small Life Lesson

I don't have grandchildren, of my own, but there are two special little ones, aged four and six years old in my life  who are very special to me.

When they were younger, the four year old, then two years old, took a sentimental item from a shelf which my deceased son had given to me. He dropped it on the floor, which was tiled, and the item smashed. As he stood there shocked and wide eyed, his sister, knowing the significance of the item, began to cry, telling him what a naughty thing he had done.

Although I was upset, I reacted by reassuring them both that while the broken item WAS indeed precious, it wasn't as precious to me as they were.

I still have the broken piece, albeit without the glass top and I hope that my reaction said something to them about the importance of love and relationships over material possessions. 

Just Because It's The Right Thing

Hello.  In the past two days, I have had two very similar experiences in terms of returning money to people. The reactions surprised me so much that I had to share it with you all.  Two days ago, I struck up a nice conversation with this new business owner at a coffee shop in my town.  After I had walked about half a mile back towards the parking garage, I realized that I had left without paying.  I walked back to pay my $1.90, and the man was astounded that I had come back to pay instead of just continuing on my way.  Similarly, yesterday I was eating lunch at a local pizza place, and a family walked in.  They had a little girl in the family who was maybe 7 or 8, and a $10 bill fell out of her pocket next to our table.  I got up, picked it up, and ... Read Full Story >>

The Christmas Kindness Project

  I am a social worker and substance abuse counsellor. I wanted to tell everyone about my very dear friend and mentor who passed away a few months ago. I met him many years ago while doing my internship in the county correctional facility. He was directing a program he had designed to help inmates with their drug and alcohol problems. He was always coming up with novel ways to bring hope and help to these men and their families. One of his favorite events was the toy drive he would run every Christmas for the children of the inmates. He did this for twenty years until his sudden death. As last Christmas approached I decided that this tradition HAD to be carried on, for the children as well as the memory of my friend. But the file where he kept the names of the people who had helped him over the years had gone ... Read Full Story >>

Using My First Smile Card

I finally got my smile cards in the mail and I couldn't wait to use them.  Here's what I did with my first one.

We have inter-office mail at work, so I put a smile card in an envelope with five swiss chocolates, and sent it annonomously to a fellow worker.  I pray it brightened his day and made him smile and my prayer is that he will pay-it-forward and make someone else's day.

Recycle and Conserve Clothes and Help Others

My dad opened his first clothing store in 1970 and from 1990 till 2007 operated clothing exchanges until open-heart surgery with complications squashed his mojo.  A while ago I convinced him to try a free clothing exchange online so people could trade clothes they don’t wear for some they could for the cost of postage ($10).  The USPS medium flat rate box holds a mini-wardrobe (like 5 pair of pants) so we use it as a guide for how much is traded. I deposited clothes that Plato’s Closet (a local clothing reseller) wouldn’t buy from me – wrong brand, size, style or season.  We launched our site on Christmas Day and gifted 7 boxes of clothing to needy individuals and families responding to a brief Craigslist notice. We delivered them on Christmas Eve and have added a 'Needs' page to our site so anyone can 'Trade' their clothes or 'Gift' them ... Read Full Story >>

Overwhelmed By My First Random Act Of Kindness

I just received my first random act of kindness and it has left me feeling really overwhelmed. Just last night my husband and I sat down to discuss our finances. Since his divorce 5 years ago and my job loss 18 months ago things have been going steadily down hill. We are living on overdraft, borrowing from Peter to pay Paul and we came to the sad conclusion that we will have to sell his prized 52 Chev pick-up truck which has been in the family for 55 years! He restored it from scratch 10 years ago. Feeling depressed today, I decided to go to the local mall for a coffee, as I was leaving I noticed what looked like a $20 bill folded up beside the pay phone. Wrapped up inside was a smile card! I could not believe this was happening to me at this point in time and simply had to come home and ... Read Full Story >>

Kindness All Year Around

Sweeping Up Some Kindness

I drove to a supermarket that is about 10 miles from my home. I was nervous about going too far from my house after the blizzard we had had because I hadn't cleaned the snow off the top of my car. The law is you MUST clean the snow or else you'll get a ticket for endangering other drivers with the falling snow and/or ice from you vehicle. When I pulled into the parking lot, low and behold a broom was laying on top of 3 ft of snow! Wowww, I thought.There's that Karma !! I went in the store and hobbled to the isle I was looking for as fast as I could so not to miss the opportunity to clean my van. As I was cleaning my van, a guy was gathering up shopping carts to put back in the front of the store. He was watching me the entire time. Not ... Read Full Story >>

Human Spirit Rises To Meet Japan's Tsunami

[Amidst the tragedy of the quake, tsunami and the subsequent nuclear plant explosions, the narrative of hope can often get lost. Below is an excerpt  of some truly heart warming moments of oneness that unfolded in the aftermath of the tragic Tsunami.] You can see my full note here.   Below are the some of the heart warming anecdotes that I have witnessed and heard from others ... Someone overseas called me on my cell. She said she wanted to connect to anyone who is in Japan, and so she called the country code and their own mobile number, which happened to be the same as mine. I didn't fully understand everything she said, because it was English, but I knew enough to know that she really wanted to support the Japanese people.  It really gave me so much hope.  Last night when I was walking home (since all traffic had stopped), I saw an old lady ... Read Full Story >>

Teaching My Nephew About Smile Cards

I took my nephew Braden out tobogganing and afterwards he asked me to help him shovel the walk, so I agreed and followed him out. I had showed the kids my "Smile Cards" and explained that the idea was to do an anonymous good deed and then leave behind a "Smile Card.” So when Braden and I reached the end of his house I suggested we keep going so he agreed and I explained it to him like this: "Imagine if someone had a bad day at work and there coming home feeling upset, but then they pull into the freshly shovelled drive and walk way. How do you think that would make them feel? And not only that, you get to get some good exercise as an immediate reward." We shovelled for the two driveways north of his house and then left Smile Cards behind and headed back to his house. He said, "Uncle B that was ... Read Full Story >>

Christmas Gratitude Cards

Hi everyone! I wanted to share a simple thing I have been doing over this Christmas period. We have a great drug store (chemist) called Boots here in the UK and I found some great small Christmas cards on a deal...  each card worked out at something like 9p a card! I found some Christmassy (red, gold and green) glitter pens and wrote variations of the following: Hello there! This card is for you to thank you for all the work you do throughout the year. People nowadays live their lives at a crazy pace, and that sometimes means that your work gets taken for granted. So on behalf of everyone whose lives you touch every day: THANK YOU and MERRY CHRISTMAS. So far I think I have handed out about 35 cards to Nurses, Street sweepers, train guards, train drivers, bus drivers and anyone who seems like a good target.  I hope when they open them they give them a ... Read Full Story >>

Chosing To Be Helpful

I work at a reception desk, and I find myself reciting directions to people all day without really giving it much thought.  There is an elevator near my desk and I have been known to be annoyed when people stare blankly at me, waiting for my help instead of reading the instructions for its use. 

Today, instead of being annoyed, I purposely put a smile on my face and walked to the elevator each time someone seemed confused.  By the third time I did it, I found that I was enjoying myself, like I did when I first started at my job.

Instead of being caught up in how many times I have had to do a particular task, I am looking for opportunities to make someone's day a little brighter.  It feels good to be nice to people, especially when you hear someone call you "that nice girl in the lobby".

A Spontaneous Christmas Gift - From Everyone

It was our turn to host the Christmas family dinner. It had been a few years since it had taken place at our house. Three deaths had occurred in the intervening years, family elders. And there was the considerable loss that went with that. One of them, the mother of my son-in-law, had died almost exactly a year earlier. She and her husband had hosted many family gatherings at their large home. The gatherings there would never be the same again without her. And so my wife and I both felt both the need and the strong wish to provide a warm setting for a healing gathering. Some years earlier a secret Santa strategy had been settled upon to help reduce the financial burden of gift exchange. The names of all would be written on separate slips and then drawn by family members. You would give a gift to the person ... Read Full Story >>

Reuniting a Dog with his Owner

  I was walking in the park with my two dogs when I saw a notice on a tree saying someone had lost their dog. There was an adorable photo of the pooch as well. I thought what a shame it was and then I walked on.   My dogs and I finished our walk and left the park. Stopping at a red traffic light I glanced over at a nearby lamp post. The was another sign there, this one announcing that a dog had been found!    There was no photo but there was a phone number. 'It couldn't be the same dog," I thought to myself. "Could it?'   I grabbed my cell phone, dialled the number and left a message. Then I turned and walked back over to the "Dog Lost" sign. I have to admit I was getting pretty excited at the possiblity of helping someone.   When I got back to the first sign ... Read Full Story >>

A Moment That Changed My Life

My wife and I were on our weekly Wal-Mart trip when I noticed a young man standing at the traffic light holding a handwritten cardboard sign that read, "Hungry, Please Help." My heart started to hurt -- I have seen people in need before holding hand-made signs all over town asking for a job, food, money, etc. I guess I just never paid any attention before, shame on me. We got through the checkout lane, and I walked over to the McDonalds's inside the store. My wife said to me, "You want McDonald's, I thought we were going to eat at Wendy's?" since we usually stop at Wendy's or Arby's for a quick bite to eat during our weekly trips. I replied, "It's not for me." I bought some food, and a bottle of cold water (it was really hot and humid out), and I noticed that this young man looked very ... Read Full Story >>

Community Compassion

Last Sunday, I walked into the house in the afternoon to find my brother scurrying around in a hurry.  As soon I had taken my coat off, he placed a bunch of papers in my hands and asked if I could start folding them up (so they could fit into an envelope) as quickly as possible.  He said it needed to get done quickly before it turned dark.  I assumed it was probably something for his business and just got right to it, although I was a little surprised that something could be so urgent on a Sunday.  It wasn’t until I was halfway through that I actually looked at what I was folding – and when I did – it put the biggest smile on my face!  It was a lovely letter to all the residents of my street and the nearby streets in my neighbourhood. My brother was asking everyone to ... Read Full Story >>

From A Father's Kind Heart

During my childhood my parents owned a clothing shop in a rural Pensylvania town.

I often helped out in the store and one day I was touched by the generosity and simple kindness of my father. He was always cheerful and funny, someone every one loved. This day I got an insight into just why he was so loved.

During a busy festive season a certain woman came every week to pay a little towards her Christmas dress which was on layaway in the shop. On the last week before Christmas she came in to ask if he could put it up for sale. Her circumstances had changed and she couldn't afford the beautiful dress any more.

My dad quietly went upstairs, brought the dress down, gave it to the surprised woman, and wished her a Merry Christmas.

I remember crying just watching her face light up and my dad just waved it off like it was all in a day's work!

He did this more than I will ever know, I am sure. He has always been my inspiration - and still is.