Stories of Kindness from Around the World

Santa Drives A Taxi!

One of my best buddies was in New York for Christmas last year. She had a ball shopping, eating out and mingling with the gossling crowds. What stood out in her mind was on Christmas day, she was due at a friend's apartment and had hailed a taxi from the hotel lobby.  One promptly pulled over and without looking inside, she grabbed  the door handle to let herself in quickly as it was cold and blistery --she was used to the mild climate of California.  She hopped in the taxi and what greeted her was Santa! A gentleman outfitted in the authenic red costume, beard , glasses, huge smile and twinkling eyes.  "Where to miss"?, he asked. She was too stunned to make any comments, just gave the address of her friend's place grinning ear to ear.  One she arrived at her destination, she hopped out and handed Santa the fare.....he declined, "Merry Christmas Miss", he stated, " The ... Read Full Story >>

A Birthday Brings Gifts for Needy

   I had a surprise 40th birthday party for my husband a few weeks ago and instead of everyone bringing my husband a gift that he did not need, I asked that everyone bring a food or paper product for our local food pantry. We had around 125 people that attended the surprise party. My husband was totally surprised. He was able to see people that he had not seen in a while. I had so many nice compliments on the party, but the special thing was that we were able to stock our local food pantry with $100 in cash and a whole truck full of food and supplies.
   If you are having a party, stop and think about doing the same thing. Others will benefit so much more than we would with a whole table full of gifts.

"The world always looks brighter from behind a smile"

~ Author Unknown.

How to Make a Friend

My son Wynn has autism. As a result, his social skills are stunted. Neverless, he still longs for friendship and human kinship even though he rarely knows how to properly initiate conversations. When he was 7 or 8, he went through a phase where he would approach strangers with survey-type questions such as: "Excuse me, Sir. Are you married or are you happy?" or "Excuse me, Lady. Have you always been so old?" or, my personal favorite, "Excuse me, Girl. How did you grow up to be a fat woman?" As you can imagine, he didn't make many friends for either one of us, and I spent a lot of time apologizing and feeling embarrassed (though I have to say, his questions were actually quite relevant).  When Wynn was 10, he entered the phase of being totally enamored with men who had facial hair. In his attempt to interact with his subject of interest, he would approach each ... Read Full Story >>

Karmically Rich

I just can't get over the fact that there really are so many caring people in this world....Sometimes we wake up and think about all of the world's tragedies and begin to believe we are doomed as a planet. I don't even like watching the news in the morning because the deaths and car accidents and flames that flash across the screen in loud red and orange colors are the first visual images of my day that set a somber tone to my newly awakened eyes. To shift my perspective on the world, what I do instead is, clutch the remote, and push the "off" button so that version of what the world we live in today is shut off.  Ready to reset my day, I make my way to the HelpOthers site on my computer, with my steaming cup of coffee in my hand. Here, I discover a world that doesn't appear on television screens. I find wonderful stories that uplift ... Read Full Story >>

A Purse's Precious Content Recovered

   My young daughter and I were on a local bus a few years back when she found a purse on the floor under a discarded newspaper.    We checked it out. It was almost empty but there was a video store card. So, trying to set a good example, I took Amy with me to the video store where the guy behind the counter gave us a phone number for this particular member.    By now Amy, who must have been about seven, was starting to lose interest. It was a tatty old purse, with nothing in it. Nonetheless, I phoned the number and a woman came to collect it. Amy was there when I handed it over and I could tell she was surprised by how emotional the woman was to get her purse   back. (I was too, a little.)    She tried to give Amy a reward, but Amy (bless ... Read Full Story >>

This 'Thank you' Hit Home

   As I drank my coffee and looked through the paper, I saw a letter to the editor thanking our community for all of its help.  I began reading the letter, and realized that it was from a friend of mine who has gone through difficult  year of illness.  Adrienne wrote this beautiful thank you letter to me, my friends and our little town.  As I read it, I cried, because she so eloquently and genuinely expressed my feelings of gratitude.  She said that she was overwhelmed by the selfless charity to her family.  People she didn't even know, brought her meals, sent her cards, encouraged her with phone calls, offered to pick up groceries and run errands.  She said that she was so proud to live in a community that took care of her family and showed true love and compassion, during their difficult times.  She realized that her little town, is her family.  She also said that she now understands that community service isn't only providing 2 or 3 hours of month in a club, but also knowing and responding to the needs of those around us.  Thank you Adrienne, for putting into words what has been in my heart.

Love, Jessi

My Christmas Shoes!

This is a true story written from a child's perspective by my dear, 68 year old mother, a post war/depression child living in Newfoundland, Canada at the time this happened!  She will be reading this to the children and congregation at her church over the Christmas season. ---- Every year at this time I remember a Christmas when I was 8 years old. It is the one memory of Christmas that has stayed with me all my life. My children always loved hearing it. I grew up in a small community in Newfoundland, with the sea right at our door. My father was a sea captain and was away from home most of the year, but he was always home for Christmas. I remember the excitement bubbling up inside me -- it would soon be Christmas and Dad would be home for at least 3 months. I don't know which excited me most. Everything would ... Read Full Story >>

Secret Santa with a Difference

This will be the second year at our company when we do a Secret Santa exchange that makes a difference.

As with the usual gift exchange we all pull a name out of a hat and purchase a gift for that individual. The difference is that we envision our recipient as a child & choose a gift the child would enjoy. After we have all opened our gifts & gotten a good laugh, we collect up the toys and take them to one of the many Christmas toy drives in our city.

This is such a great way to have some fun together & make a difference in the lives of needy children during Christmas.

A Fraternity Teams Up to Make a Child's Christmas

Occasionally, when I am bored, I like to poke around on Craigslist, which is an interactive site where people can post ads for just about anything – housing, jobs, dating, temporary work, etc.  I was paging through the site one day, and found an ad from a woman saying that she was on medical leave from work, had very little money, and would be unable to fund Christmas presents for her son. She felt awful about this, as her son was a good well-rounded kid, an honors student, and a boy who gave to others. I decided I wanted to help her out and even though I didn’t know her it started to feel personal at this point.  I asked her what her son wanted for Christmas and she told me that he was interested in a Guitar Hero game. I was trying to order one online, but they came in ... Read Full Story >>

You Can Do It, Sam!

My youngest son and I bought a children's book titled You Can Do It, Sam by Amy Hest. In the story a small bear and his mother bake cakes and then deliver them to their neighbors. They baked 12 cakes, but saved the last 2 to eat themselves when they got home. After reading this book at least once a day for a couple of weeks to my 7-year old son, he  told me that he wanted to do the same thing for Christmas Eve.  He even picked out a special baking tin in the store that he asked me to buy. It had room to bake 6 individual heart-shaped cakes. On the morning of Christmas Eve, I mixed up the chocolate cake batter, with help from my son. We ended up baking 18 small heart cakes. We frosted each cake, before we put it into a sandwich-sized ziploc. We added a ... Read Full Story >>

My Wii Angel

I have been a foster mom for the past 19 years and adopted 3 medically needy boys.  Since I retired and the boys are out of the system, I am no longer eligible for the services that made the finances easier. So the boys wanting a $250 game system this Christmas was questionable.  A woman I casually met at a local bingo asked if I was going to get the kids one for Christmas.   I was planning on it but had to wait until I could save the money.   She offered to buy it for me and I could pay her back when I had the money since the item was difficult to find.  I was grateful for the offer but it stressed me to know I had another bill to pay.  The following week, she never mentioned the offer and I figured it was forgotten.   When I was leaving she ... Read Full Story >>

Doing Small Acts with Great Love

Do all my international friends know what a Lollipop Lady is? A school crossing patrol guard, named after the big lollipop shaped signs they hold up to stop traffic. Okay, so now I'll begin my story. This morning our Lollipop Lady just couldn't stop thanking me and I took me a while to get up to speed on what she was thanking me for.  It seemed Julie, my wife, had given our boy Josh a box of chocolates to give to his teacher for Christmas. Discovering that we had a box left over Julie wrapped it and gave to Josh to give to the Lollipop Lady.  It was somewhat of an afterthought. Of course it was done with the best of intentions, but as good deeds go it wasn't really such a big deal... or so I thought. What neither Julie or I knew was that in twelve years of helping children cross the road ... Read Full Story >>

From a Flood to a Hug with Kindness

The late evening train from Glasgow was battling the worst of the winter weather and the driver was proceeding more on hope than anything. Weeks of rain had meant the line might or might not be flooded - and he wouldn't know until he got there! Well, it was flooded. So he backed up to the nearest station where we sat and waited for about half an hour with no one knowing what was going on. I didn't mind. I wasn't going home to anyone, I had music to listen to and it wouldn't be the first night I had slept on a train. But not everyone would be in that position. Then the lights went out. Still there was no announcement. We sat another half an hour then the driver announced he was taking the train back to Glasgow and anyone who didn't want to come with it should get out now.  ... Read Full Story >>

Sharing a Gift with Someone in Need

There is a charity called Oxfam Unwrapped through which you can buy gifts for Christmas, birthdays or any other occasion. The idea is that you log onto the website and make a selection from a range of gifts. The gifts include mosquito nets, fertiliser,  school books, or training for a student to become a teacher and there's a gift in every price range.

You make your selection, pay for the gift and then they donate your gift to someone in need around the world and send you (or whoever you are buying the gift for) a fridge magnet and card.

I've been selecting gifts from Oxfam Unwrapped for my own birthdays and Christmas for the past couple of years.  Its a great feeling!   This year my daughters were asking me how it works so that they can send Oxfam Unwrapped gifts as well.  It has taken a while for people to get the hang of it, but I think its catching on!

Impact of Your Stories

I went shopping yesterday having read some material on kindness.

Without thinking about it I chatted to the hassled woman in the queue with me and cheered her up a bit. Then I offered my loyalty points to the family behind me and gave my pen to the cashier who had to keep borrowing one from her colleague.

Each of these people had a bemused expression on their faces which reminded me how much these very small acts of kindness can change peoples mind sets. So little but still so effective.

Keep it up out there!  And thank you.

Just Desserts

This might not seem like such a big deal to someone who doesn't know me or my "story", but for my husband and I and our family it is huge. After nearly ten years of ongoing emotional battles with my husband's ex-wife, we had determined over the last year that we were finished and ready to move on.  Over the past year, in most instances we have simply made concessions to her and my step-son regarding visitation changes and the like, to promote harmony and to stay focused on the positive as we try to raise our two biological children as well.    Although this was "our" year to have my step-son for Thanksgiving his mother asked if he could come to her mother's home to have dessert after finishing his meal with our family.  After asking him if it was what he desired, my husband agreed to this.  Although it ... Read Full Story >>

Handcrafted Smile Cards

I recently came to this site and just started reading the stories.  The changes that people in this online family of helping others have experienced, have moved me deeply. In fact, this particular quote that had been posted was what gripped me: "You must be the change you wish to see in the world." The day I discovered the quote, my printer was out of ink so I couldn't print any smile cards, but I didn't let that stop me! I went out of the house and made my own cards. I put a different quote about kindness and the pay-it-forward message on the smile card, and included a link to the helpothers website. The next day, I bought three turkey-shaped sugar cookies in the lunch room at work and told the cashier to give them to the next three people who came in her line (as there was no one currently behind me to know it was me). I also gave her three ... Read Full Story >>

It Started At A Bagel Shop

On a recent Sunday morning, my daughter and I went the the local bagel shop for a treat. Upon leaving, we saw a wallet on the ground. I picked it up, and figured out how to contact the owner. My daughter wondered if we’d get a reward, and I said it was just right to return the wallet and that we shouldn’t return it expecting a reward. We returned the wallet, and the person was grateful, leaving a wonderful halloween pumpkin on our porch. Only 5 days later, I took a business trip and had a very pleasant cab ride with a cab rider whose home country is very distant from ours. We talked of our cultures, sharing our common experiences in our different worlds. We talked of how difficult being a cab driver has become with the slowing economy. I tipped more than usual, just seemed like the right thing ... Read Full Story >>

The Sweetness of Siblings

My sister and I are forever borrowing and giving money back to each other whenever either of us is in need.  Just last week, she asked me to pick up her medicine at the pharmacy and she said she would subsequently pay me back soon... Her response suggested to me that she was struggling financially. So, I thought I would step it up and instead of doing just one favor for her, I decided to throw in a few more while I was out shopping. I realized all of her furry living creatures would be delighted to receive some yummy treats so I picked up edible biscuits, chewable toys, and bird seeds for all of her respective pets (which included the dog, the kitty, and the new parrakeet). I got her a new sketch book  to encourage her to explore her budding artistic talent more deeply.  I found her favorite cream filled cadbury chocolate egg at the candy store and tucked that along with $40 into one of her pill bottles, so that she could discover the sweet surprise later. A kindness offer was to made her ... Read Full Story >>

Homegrown Kindness

As I read these stories, one thing strikes me over and over again. That is, an act of kindness can begin right now-- whether it starts in your own backyard, or in your home, or on your driveway, or on your neighbor's doorstep. Often times, we tell ourselves we have to join a community service organization or travel to a developing country to serve. While those are both powerful ways to give, we may get lost in faraway dreams that mostly result in traveling only in our minds but not in our lives, and there is a tendency to run away from what is always right here---the opportunity to give right now. Instead of jumping out, we can just  jump into the moment!  You don't have to start a "movement" or be a millionaire to reach out to the person across the street. When you are making dinner, you can make a little extra plate to give to a neighbor or friend.  When ... Read Full Story >>