Stories of Kindness from Around the World

Delivering Newspapers and Smiling in the Rain

On my way to mail 20 envelopes of smile cards (what a great way to start the day :-)  I saw that many of our neighbors' newspapers were wrapped in blue plastic because of the rain and were left at the end of their driveways near the street.  I always bring in our paper for my husband so when I went out that morning I thought it would be nice for them if they didn't have to walk outside in the beastly rain to get the paper.   I went around and put each of my neighbors' papers on their front doorsteps! 

A small thing, but they will never know that it was me! :-)
I left for work with a big smile on my face!

My Daughter's 19th Birthday With a Twist

For my daughter's 19th birthday in December, we bought her tickets to go and see Linkin Park, as they were playing in our city in the UK.  We didn't really have the money but we knew how much this band meant to her, and she'd seen them years earlier with her Dad. The night before she was like a kid at Christmas, all pink cheeked, shiny eyed and giddy with aniticipation. Every so often she got up and came to sit with us, because she couldn't sleep.  On the night  of the concert it was good to see her so happy and excited, as she and her boyfriend set off. Needless to say when they returned after midnight , with t-shirts, a programme and lots of video and pictures of the band, listening to her gushing about how fantastic they had been, we knew that the money had been well spent. This will ... Read Full Story >>

A Child, a Bicycle and a Stray Dog

In South Africa we daily learn  how to trust other racial groups. This is an amazing experience in itself, to understand the one-ness despite the different colours. Leaving my mom's home on Sunday I saw some kids standing in the street, looking intently to the direction I was coming from. Something seemed wrong. Not sure what was happening, I stopped and wound down the window. A teenage girl peeped in and said: "My brother was riding his bicycle and was chased by that stray dog. He is dead scared of dogs, and just climbed over someone's wall to get away." I looked back and saw the dog. A big, brown creature clearly belonging somewhere else, but not in a street where kids play and drive their bicycles. "Get in," I said, "and show me where your brother is".   In hopped three kids and we drove up the street to where a young boy ... Read Full Story >>

Smiley Balloons

While I was out shopping for some cool birthday candles for a friend I came across some SMILEY BALLOONS! 

Big, bright, yellow smiley faces that I can blow up into gigantic balloons and share with others.  I am making my plans, pulling out smile quotes, deciding who will be my kindness recipients.

I am also going to go to the Hobby store and buy some small rocks and add a smile face (an idea from this site!).  It seems with the cold, gray skies, a new year beginning, etc that many people are in a slump, have the blues or are depressed. My plan is to bring cheer, smiles, upliftment, and surprise with gifted smiley baloons, smile quotes and more!

Can you believe I found the smiley balloons in the cooking section at Safeway?  SMILING, ALL THE MORE! 

My Inspiration To Give

I went to a Catholic Mission Hospital in Ghana one day, to visit a friend who was a Priest, and medical doctor but was off duty then. On reaching at the hospital gate, there was this woman who seemed to have traveled from the far away village to send her sick girl to the hospital. And the girl was actually dying, so pile, with bulged eyes, and flies were all over her body. Also, the mother of this girl who looked so shabbily and tattered could not do anything but to see her poor girl dying on her own laps, since the nurses on duty would not offer her the necessary help, perhaps due to her poverty. From the hospital gate, the shouts for help from this poor woman drew my attention, so I approached her, took the sick girl from her laps and sent her straight to the consulting room to see ... Read Full Story >>

From My Home To Their Lunch Hour

I am lucky enough to live close enough to my office that I can go home for lunch. My two girlfriends at work can't leave their desks during the lunch hour and usually bring their lunches to work each day.

When I return back to work after lunch, I usually bring a little treat for them from home.  Whether it is an orange, pretzels, or cookies and sometimes even warm tea!  They never expect me to do this, but have really big smiles on their faces when I bring exactly what they're craving!

I love to make them smile and to share what yummies I have at home.

The Battle For Change

I am a New Yorker, born, raised and residing.  We know how much money beggers make a day.  One begger can get about a dollar per 20 people who pass, either in the form of a dollar or in change from several people.  In New York, you can easily get a minimum of 500 people within a 2 hour period passing you.  That is basically 40 dollars every 2 hours.  The number rises if you're in front of a restaurant , a really busy street, or in the subway. Do the math and you can see beggers make more money begging in a day than some people with jobs. I never give money to people -- never.  But last night around 3 am,  I stopped at a Mc Donalds in Harlem to use the bathroom.  I saw him in the door waiting for me to head over to him so he could open the door ... Read Full Story >>

Children Teaching Kindness in School

We have only just started our Kind Act Campaign and we already are figuring out ways to expand it. The student council wants everyone in the school in on it. They wanted to keep track of the good deeds too, and maybe hang them up.  Recently Children for Children Inc sent students in the NYC schools  seeds to plant so they can grow them and use them in a volunteering act in the spring. At their site I found pay it forward cards. Well now the students are going classroom to classroom teaching the students how to use them. They want to collect them and decorate the main floor with them. Card holder does a kind act and gives card to person, that person does one and gives it their person, it goes on until card is filled(5 altogether). The last person gives the card back to the beginning person. They can ... Read Full Story >>

A Cookie and a "Pearl" in the Hair Salon

I get my haircut about twice a year, so scheduling an appointment is a big deal for me. The woman who cuts my hair is a real sweetie and is more like a therapist for everyone who walks in the door!.  It always amazes me that even though I see her infrequently, she remembers everything about me.  I had called to make an appointment and found that everything was booked. Well, to my great surprise a few evenings later she called me at home to tell me that someone had cancelled and I could come in.  Sp. I made a mental note to bring something special for her when I went for my haircut. The day of the appointment there was a tremendous storm.  As I was leaving work, I picked up a hot chocolate and an extra large chocolate cookie to give my hairstylist. I thought it would be a perfect pick-me-up ... Read Full Story >>

You Changed My Life

My husband and I are lucky to have landed together in a new country just a month ago. We were sort of afraid about what's in store for us. When we landed at the airport, a tall man with smiling eyes greeted us. The days and months were somehow made easy for us by this kind man. He greeted us everyday with his smiling face. He accompanied us in going to the bank, in buying our groceries, in telling us where to buy paint, where the coffee shop is, where to have key duplication, where to buy almost everything. He told us he is our big brother. Twice, we watched the match in a coffee shop. During the first get together, we saw how his eyes beamed in happiness. He told us that we're lucky - my husband and I are together in this foreign land.  He said he has been ... Read Full Story >>

A Knitting Kit for Someone Who Lost Everything

A few of my friends and I belong to a knitting and crochet group.  Recently one of the older members had a fire in her house and lost everything. I went home and dug out an extra knitting bag filled it with needles and notions and passed it on to her through another member of our group. 

After a month of not seeing her,  Marcia came back to our group and gave me the biggest hug.  She said she couldn't believe that I had given her the bag and needles.  At the meeting she stocked up on yarn and was happy  to be getting  back to making things again.   I  know she has lost so much, but it  was nice to see her happy about something that she loves and enjoys doing. 

Sharing A Batch of Chocolate Chip Cookies

I love baking. I also love being healthy. So, I obviously can't eat everything I bake! Well, with this cold snap, I thought it would be worth it to bake a batch of chocolate chip cookies.

What did I decide to do with them?  Mail them to friends and relatives who could use the cheer, of course!

I heard of a friend in a custody battle for his son. A box of cookies on the way to him. My snowbound aunt and uncle? Box of cookies for them! A girl at church who just broke up with her boyfriend? Who deserves cookies more? When I ran out of people to send them to, I piled the rest on a plate and took them to the apartment clubhouse office.

A couple of the brown paper packages have already arrived and some have called me crying, saying how much it meant to them.   My first batch of smile cards is on the way, so next time, I'll have a little something extra to add to those packages!

Purple Bag Full of Cheer

I received a call from my landlord about 2 weeks ago asking if I would talk to her friend.  Her friend had just undergone a masectomy and was feeling low and overwhelmed.  Since I have cancer also, she thought I could cheer her up.

I got a bright cheery purple bag with flowers and a bear on it.  I put inspirational books from Dave Drevecky's website in the bag (he is amazing!), some lotion (nothing makes you feel better than a backrub!) and some places to help her out during this time.  I talked to her and told her some days will be great, some days you  just want to hide.  Its great because she is now my friend too!

Braving the Cold to Warm Up Hearts

In my city, it was a bit on the cold side this week.  I have several elderly neighbors who are always very nice, so I wanted to think of a way to help them. 

I noticed that on the colder mornings their trash cans and delivered newspapers usually stayed out near the end of their driveway until later in the day.  I've watched them go out and get move their trash cans and pick up their newspapers some mornings, and it doesn't look like an easy task for them.  On colder morning, I they have to wait until it is warm enough to go out and get them. 

As I was preparing to leave the house this morning, I decided to  place their trash cans by the garages and put the newspapers by their front doors.  It only took me a few minutes and now I've decided to make it a part of my daily routine! :) 

Carrying a Neighbors Boxes

   This morning as I was coming to work, (on time for once!!!!) I saw the lady that works next door to us in the plaza where my office is located.  She was carrying in box after box after box from her car.

   As she went inside with yet another one, I started walking over to her door. When she came outside, I had a big grin on my face, and a box in my arms.  "Need some help?" I asked her.  "Oh! Well, thank you," the woman said.  "No problem. I just saw you struggling with all these boxes.  I couldn't resist the chance to help someone in need," I said, grinning wider.

   The woman smiled in thanks, and I helped her carry the remainder of the boxes into the store.  When we were done, she told me to have a nice weekend, and I told her the same.

   At lunch, I left a smile card on the windshield of her car. :)

Simple Common Courtesies in Life

This morning I paused to hold the door open for a lady rushing up the steps too the coffee shop we were both entering. A small gesture I have always done throughout my life at every opportunity. Her smile and thank you was a refreshing change from what I feel has become the norm in today’s society. I can’t believe how many times in a day the simple act of holding open a door is met with indifference or barely a sideways glance. I believe it is the simple common courtesies we afford each other that are the kindest acts of all. How often we forget to give thanks to each other for the simple things we often take for granted and how wonderful it makes us feel when we do.

Three Little Things That Made A Big Difference

This week I was reminded that everything we do matters in life. I did 3 small things this week that I found out made a big difference to someone else. 

I waved to a new neighbor who was intensely watching her little boy in the yard. She broke into a smile and a few days later told me that I had changed the rest of her day for the better with my small gesture.

When I was in the drugstore, the woman stocking cold medicine dropped one. I picked it up and handed it to her, thinking nothing of it.  She thanked me and told me her back was hurting and she appreciated what I did.

I found that a few kind words can touch someone more deeply than you ever could have known. “Thank you” does matter and can make someone feel appreciated.  A sincere “I’m sorry” does make a difference and can lighten a difficult situation.  And a few thoughts from the heart grow larger when they reach someone else’s heart.

I barely thought much about it when I did any of these things. But I was reminded yet again that everything we do matters. Never underestimate the impact you may have on someone!

New Sneakers and a Milkshake

My  15 year-old daughter needed new sneakers. She wears them every single day to school and they seem to wear out quickly.  So, we went to the mall to a place called Journeys to look for her shoes.  The guy behind the counter looked a little "scary" to me. Dark hair, piercings, but smiling :) thank goodness. (Never judge, I remind myself!)

He helped my daughter find the 'perfect' sneakers and she was happy. When I saw they weren't laced, I commented. The sales guy (about 18years old) says, I can 'bar lace' them for her, no problem!!! I can even lace them in 2 colors if she wants!  She was thrilled and it took him about 5 minutes to do it (would have taken me 5 hours to do and not in 2 colors either!).  

The salesman was so helpful that we walked over to McDonalds and got him a milkshake.  When we returned with it, he couldn't thank us enough.  We were all smiles -- a good trip with my teenager.

Art of Giving

"Rivers do not drink their own water, nor do tree eat their own fruit, nor do rain clouds eat the grains reared by them. The wealth of the noble is used solely for the benefit of others?      Even after accepting that giving is good and that one must learn to give, several questions need to be answered.      The first question is when should one give?  We all know the famous incident from Mahabharat. Yudhisthir, asks a beggar seeking alms to come the next day. On this, Bhim rejoices, that Yudhisthir his brother, has conquered death! For he is sure that he will  be around tomorrow to give. Yudhisthir gets the message.      One does not know really whether one will be there tomorrow to give!      The time to give therefore is now. The next question is 'how much to give?   One recalls the famous incident from history. Rana Pratap was reeling after ... Read Full Story >>

"What Color is the Sky?"

   I go to a private girls school which is filled with daughters of doctors and lawyers.   We are all very privileged teens.  It is always strange for me when i see those around willing to give to a worthy cause, or even to show thanks for the world around them.    I always make a point of trying to see the beauty in life, especially the sky.  The sky is such an amazing sight, and so big but we never seem to notice it.  Once I was eating lunch with my friends and I was staring up into the sky on a wonderful sunny day. My friend asked me what i was doing and i said, "I just can't get over how blue the sky is." My friends all looked at me like I was crazy.  Later that day we had just finished a math test and my friend ... Read Full Story >>