Stories of Kindness from Around the World

Coloring Book And Crayons

This past weekend I was going through my stuff.  While doing so, I stumbled upon 3 large boxes of  crayons, coloring books and markers.  I am a kid at heart, I must confess.  They were mine and I had not used them yet. 

I decided to take the coloring book and crayons to the laundry mat and waited for a child to give to. 

There was a little girl around 4 yrs, sitting while her mother put the clothes in the washer.  I went over to her mother and said, "I would like her little girl to have these, along with this smile card."  She gladly accepted.

I walked away and was doing my own thing, when the little girl came over and thanked me with a huge smile on her face! 

I still need to give the other stuff away and can't wait.  I love doing this!

How I Found Happiness That Day

The typical rickshaw puller (Pedi cab driver) works like a beast of burden and barely earn forty rupees a day (a dollar).

One cold winter morning (around 5 a.m.), I got out on the road. I had to walk to my school, which is just 10 minutes away. But then a voice inside told me to make some one happy today.

I got on to a rickshaw. The puller was an old and gaunt fellow. I asked him to drive over to the school. We arrived in a few minutes. The fare for that distance was only five rupees or even less if I bargained.

Instead, I got down and placed a fifty rupee note in his hand. He said he had no change for such a’ big’ amount. I told him that I was giving the entire 50 rupee note … He was shocked and surprised!  He gazed at me with gratitude-filled eyes.

I told him this morning God whispered in my ear: “Make this rickshaw-man happy!”

He looked at the red rising ball, the Sun, and praised the Sun while kissing the 50 rupee note.

I felt very happy that day.

Cold Hands

My daughter is six years old. I wanted to wash her winter coat and I found in each pocket a pair of gloves.

I thought that one pair of gloves might not be enough to keep her hands warm and asked her why she had two pairs.

She answered: ‘I am doing this already for a while, daddy. You know, some children in school don’t have gloves and when I have an extra pair, I can lend it to them so they won’t get cold hands'.

So Much Love To Give

I wanted to share with everyone the never ending love that I have experienced from my mother. Besides the fact that she loves me and all of her children, grandchildren and friends unconditionally, she still finds time to give to strangers as well. She was 'forced' in to early retirement by my father who decided at age 57 he had had enough of working and that his wife should also give up work to spend her days with him. This didn't go down too well with a women who at 55 had worked the majority of her life and as her two children and 7 gandchildren didn't live in the same city as her, what was she to do? She played golf and 'played' ladies for about 12 months but felt dissatisfied with that lifestyle. So several years ago, she began volunteering with an organisation in Australia called RSL Care. She takes 'old' ... Read Full Story >>

At The Baker's Shop

Yesterday evening, as I was entering the bakery, I saw a father and his 7-8 year old son.  The kid was pointing to a particular cake and pleading his father to buy it for him. From their clothes, it was clear that they were poor.  The father did have some money -- a 500 Rupee note -- but no change.  The shopkeeper was insisting  that he needed change, and the father was trying to console his son by saying that shop keeper is not accepting the money. I could see the sadness on the eyes of that kid. On seeing me, the father turned to me, "Do you have change for 500 rupees?"  I replied,  "No."  But I did him some money so that he could buy his son what the cake he so wanted. I was too shy to stay there, since I knew that they will come to thank me.  So I went ... Read Full Story >>

Smiles Are Contagious

Today I was at a local college taking enrichment courses all day long...9:30am-10pm.  There were many familar faces there but I wasn't hanging with anyone in particular when it came time to eat lunch in the cafeteria. 

I got my soup and walked around looking for a place to sit and eat. I noticed one table had only 1 person and there were 4 chairs. I walked up to the table and SMILED really big and asked if she minded if I sat and ate with her. She smiled back and said, "Please Join me".  I was so relieved to be welcomed like that.

Before I knew it we were chatting and exchanging ideas for the classes that we teach.

I highly recommend being friendly and smiling if you are in the position I was in. I made a friend and it felt good. Smile, it's contagious.

Scientific Research on Kindness

Heather asks, "A friend mentioned to me that research shows that a certain number of acts of kindess a week "sticks"--creates the positive habit. Do you know of this, or similar, research?" So we thought we'd compile some useful resources for Heather and the rest of you, thanks to our friends at DailyGood. Altruism: a Neural Kick from Within: What motivates people to act anonymously kind? Researchers at the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke in Bethesda, Maryland, wanted to find exactly that -- the neural basis for unselfish acts. So they decided to peek into the brains of 19 volunteers who were choosing whether to give money to charity, or keep it for themselves. They found that the part of the brain that was active when a person donated happened to be the brain's reward center -- the mesolimbic pathway -- responsible for doling out the ... Read Full Story >>

A Flashlight From An Old Man

I recently went to a restaurant to buy a pie for a party.  As I walked up the steps and opened the door, I saw a hunched-over old man with a cane walking toward me carrying a handled bag full of things he had just purchased there.  I stepped back and opened the door widely so that he could pass through easily.  As he did so, he stopped and said to me, "Wait!"   He set down the bag, reached into one of his pants pockets, and retrieved a tiny plastic keychain flashlight still in its original plastic wrapping.  He handed it to me and said, "Take this.  I like to give things to people who have done something for me."  I thanked him and told him he was very welcome.  I was almost speechless as I watched this old man walk off to his car.  I added his token to ... Read Full Story >>

Thanks For Your Time

Sometimes life's most important lessons are learned from the guy next door. It had been some time since Jack had seen the old man. College, career, and life itself got in the way. In fact, Jack moved clear across the country in pursuit of his dreams. There, in the rush of his busy life, Jack had little time to think about the past and often no time to spend with his wife and son. He was working on his ambitious future, and nothing could stop him. The phone rang one day.  It was his mom, who told him, "Jack, Mr. Belser died last night. The funeral is Wednesday." Memories flashed through his mind like an old newsreel as he sat quietly remembering his childhood days. "Jack, did you hear me?"  "Oh, sorry, Mom. Yes, I heard you. It's been so long since I thought of him. I'm sorry, but I honestly thought he ... Read Full Story >>

Bumper Kindness

The other day I was picking up my mother.  As I waiting for her, I parked the car and went shopping for a bit.  I was probably gone for an hour or so. 

When I got back to my car,  there was a note on my windscreen saying that they had accidently scraped my bumper on the back of my car!

The note said they had waited nearly an hour but had to go, and they were sorry and left their number and said to call them.

What honesty and kindness!

Lost & Found: Two Rings

After working out one day, in the locker room, I came across a gorgeous wedding ring studded with many diamonds and a ruby ring.  I could tell they were very expensive, and by the color, the gold looked to be 24 carat. I looked around but there was no one in the gym or in the locker room.  So I took the rings to our work Lost & Found in the Security department upstairs.  After you fill out the tag, the items are kept for at least 30 days. I told the security guard that I did not want my name mentioned, as I wanted it to be a random act of kindness. I did not want the person to feel they needed to thank me or compensate me.  And I was pretty sure that the rings would be claimed! Over the course of the day, I forgot all about turning in the rings but ... Read Full Story >>

Switching Seats at the Movies

I am 15. Last night my friend and I went to Shrek the 3rd. We got there an hour early because it was opening night and we were among probably the first 25 to go into the theater. We got an awesome seat on the second to back row and sat plum in the center. As the theater began to fill up over the hour, we began to see that we were sort of in the way. This man asked us if all the seats on our left side were saved. We told him no, they were empty. It was obvious he was trying to see how to fit a very large group in that had not arrived yet. Without much thinking we said, "Hey, would you like us to move down to the end of the row so your whole family can sit together?" He said "Oh are you ... Read Full Story >>

One Scary Man

I know that the title is little curious. But the scary homeless man is even more curious. I have lived in Mayport Florida for about three years. Every day, leaving work, coming home and running errands, I pass this homeless man with two shopping baskets full of his treasures.  Except for about 2-3 months of the year (and I'm not sure where he goes during that time), he is always around, never to be missed. Anyhow, the reason I call him a scary man is because my son and I are often together when we see this man and he's always talkin to him self and staring at people with an awkward look. He talks loud and much of what he says does not make sense. With his two carts filled to the top, he's there just talking away.  It's intimidating. My wife and I are always talking about his misfortune and how ... Read Full Story >>

Helping Hand With A Resume

I have just started up a small business helping people find jobs and particulary to do their cv and covering letters for job interviews (after 16 years I still love the work).  We charge a minimal amount of NZ$25.00. I have had two clients this week come in who are desperately looking for work and needed a CV (resume).  They did not have the money to pay for it, so I said for them to let me look at what I can do and asked them to come back the next day.  I finished one that night and rang the lady to tell her I had finished her CV, that I also have an employer who I'm sending a copy to and told her that she can pay me when she gets a job.  She had not expected much other than advice, but hearing the joy in her voice was what it's all about.  While there was a phone line, ... Read Full Story >>

The Purpose Of A Dog

[ I lost my dog Samson back in February, one fo the hardest things in my life. My sister just sent this to me, and I believe it's true. After all Dog is God spelled backwards. :) ] Being a veterinarian, I had been called to examine a ten-year old Irish Wolfhound named Belker. The dog's owners, Ron, his wife, Lisa, and their little boy, Shane, were all very attached to Belker and they were hoping for a miracle. I  examined Belker and found he was dying of cancer. I told the family we  couldn't do anything for Belker, and offered to perform the euthanasia  procedure for the old dog in their home. As we made arrangements, Ron and Lisa told me they  thought it would be good for the four-year old Shane to observe the procedure.  They felt as though Shane might learn something from the experience.  The next day, I felt the ... Read Full Story >>

Noticing The Small Things

My internet went down for a little while and now that its back up I've been very excited about reading some more stories to get inspired!

To get back into the swing of things in helping others I thought I would share a story of a simple random act of kindness towards a work friend of mine. This friend loves cake and most days he goes to our work cafeteria to buy a piece of cake. I noticed today that he wasn't having a particularly good day and seemed down. I checked our breaks and realised mine was before him so I raced up and bought him a slice of his favourite cake. I came back to our office to give his slice of cake to him and I couldn't believe his smile! He was so happy that not only I had bought him a piece of cake but that I had noticed he enjoys cake and which cake he likes the most. such a simple act of kindness made his day!

Kindness In A Box

Last Mother's Day, I woke and quickly took a stroll to a few neighbors' front stoops to leave an anonymous treat.  Earlier in the week I had put together little treat boxes with a few chocolates and other hard candies, a Pretty Mother's Day Poem, and A Smile Card. 

I also delivered a few to the nursing home just down the road. I left them at the front desk and said they are for anyone who might not otherwise be remembered today. 

It felt extremely rewarding to be able to give on mother's day to mom's who have had a difficult year because of divorce, death, job loss and just plain forgotten.  :)  No one will know who shared these little boxes, but I signed the card :Love GOD

Still Good People Out There

My husband had lost his job of 15 years. It was very difficult on him and his self esteem was at a low. Being in his 40s, made it hard for him to find work because his training was in a dying field, hand drafting, and also telecommunication installation. He was without work for over 18 months. Not even a grccery store would hire him as they felt he was Over qualified and that He would leave when he found something better. Then an angel arrived at our house -- my daughter's friend's mom. She knew we were feeling the money crunch and talked to her husband (who owned a company) about offering my husband a job. And he did! My husband had to be trained in a totally different field of work, but he learned quickly and became very good at it. We are grateful for that angel's visit and that ... Read Full Story >>

I Honor All Who Mother

[Originally posted on May 12th] Today as I reflect on Motherhood, many images come to mind.  Some encourage and inspire me and others have me reflecting on my past sorrow. I am elated for myself as I will share Mothers day with my 2 children; I am sad that my other children will only be a thought and a dream of what might have been.  You see, I have lost 9 children 6 thru miscarriage and 3 thru failed invitro fertilization.  Today, I honor all of my children. My own Mother grows older and suffers mild dementia and has suffered strokes.  Yes, now I Mother her.  I try to meet her needs physically and emotionally while trying to remember that she is my Mother and will forever see me as a child.  Her life has changed and for that I am sad.  Yet she remains with me, while so many others will feel the ... Read Full Story >>

Mystery Muffin Giver

What would it be this morning -- a warm Blueberry Lemon?  Banana Nut? Cranberry Orange? Oatmeal Raisin? There is always a warm muffin or two tucked into a white napkin and placed next to the morning newspaper, waiting for me once I open my front door. Who is the Mystery Muffin Giver? I try to wake up early to see if I can catch him/her in the act so far I've been unsuccessful.  But no matter what, I've got those goodies and a good read to dwell on! [Now for the background story!] My Mom lives in a Retirement community and she moved in after my Dad passed.  She loves it.  Most of her neighbors in the apartments are widows just like her and they keep each other good company.  In this community, though, while lunches and dinners are prepared in the dining room, there's no breakfast. Now, my mom is an early -- and ... Read Full Story >>