Tins of Chocolate with a Smile...
Recently, my Mother underwent a surgery to repair a valve in her heart at UCLA Medical Center. During the first couple of days she was in the hospital, my Dad was telling me how wonderful the nurses were in the ICU and how they took such great care of my Mom and made sure she was comfortable at all times. I told him it would be great if we could think of a fun way to show our gratitude -- in the whole process of going through a major surgery, the nurses are often the people who get overlooked the most and aren't thanked enough for the compassion and care they give to each patient. My Dad had a great idea -- he asked me to bring along some cute decorative tins of chocolate from London for all of them. When I arrived at the hospital, I had my first opportunity to tag Kara, ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by sonrisa
- Sep 20, 2006
- Comments (5)
- Share Story
A Stop Sign Moment
It was one of those awkward stop sign moments. You and the car on the cross streets both arrive at the stop sign together. Both want to rush first but both are a bit hesitant. And then, one person gives in -- usually the person with the faster car. :)
Well, it just so happened that I had one of those stop sign moments the other day. But I had decided to let the other person go and the lady on the cross street had decided the same.
So here we are -- both of us trying to be kind to each other.
I was determined to stick my ground, so lifted my hand and signaled her to go ahead of me.
She gave me the best smile, and I saw an inaudible "thank you" through some lip-reading, and it just made me feel so good.
All it takes is a moment to be kind. Try it next time. It feels good.
- Posted by twiceblessed
- Sep 19, 2006
- Add Comment
- Share Story
Blanket from God
I was on my way to get some books for school, when I saw two old men sitting and talking in the sun near the bus stand. What struck me about them was not their stance, but rather their attire. Both were wearing old and torn clothes, one was barefoot and the other had on broken sandals. As of late, I’ve been keeping my eyes and heart open for opportunities to serve. Stocked with clothing, it’s my job to find these items an appropriate new home. The men were engrossed in their conversation and did not pay heed to me as I inched closer to hear their words. “In these winter months, we’re lucky that the sun shines so brightly in the day and offers some heat in the cold, but what are we going to do at night? My blanket is thin and torn and ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by Raghu
- Sep 18, 2006
- Comments (7)
- Share Story
healthy alternative
I usually crave a sugar rush in the middle of the afternoon at work. And the alternatives are not always healthy . Its either a candy bar, soda or coffee. I wish we had more healthy alternatives. So decided to go ahead and make it happen. I left a single serving size pack of Soy milk right next to the soda vending machine at work a couple of days back, then a fruit - and helped someone stay away from soda/candy they did not really need :)
- Posted by kundavai
- Sep 17, 2006
- Comments (1)
- Share Story
The Tree of Treats
I have always loved to give, and surprise people. It often frustrates me that I don't have the money to do more. But try to do the best with what I have- and be creative with it! Here are a few things I have done. I hope it will inspire everyone to keep on their giving journey. * Left gift baskets on friends doors. Today My friend was going on an over-due road trip with her family. I created a road trip basket with- sodas, magazines, munchies, coloring books. Left it on her doorstep and drove off. I called and told her there was a tornado to check out her front door, and she found the basket. She called in tears, saying it was the first time anyone had done anything like that. (Isnt it sad with a world full of millions of people...that this doesnt happen everyday?) * I went to my neighbors, with my son and bought fun little toys at walgreens, we tied colored ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by Tinav
- Sep 17, 2006
- Comments (2)
- Share Story
Sharing the Omnivore's Dilema
Recently I finished a book entitled 'The Omnivore's Dilema', a really interesting read about how our food arrives at our tables. I also recently went on a backpacking trip where I was able to share some of the anecdotes from the book with some of my fellow hikers. One of them in particular seemed very interested in what the book had to say. So this weekend I decided I would send him my copy of the book with a smile card attached :)
- Posted by karmaklimber
- Sep 16, 2006
- Add Comment
- Share Story
An Inspiring Comment: Super-sized Kindness
I plan to start by doing a couple of good deeds daily and using the smile cards. My idea is based on the movie "Super size" - document and record thirty days of doing random kind acts for people. For two objections; 1) just because it makes me feel better and helps pay it forward with good karma 2) to prove to others and document what happens to others when you give. That it will come back 10 times. Thank you for your website and the smile cards - you truly make the world a better place.
- Posted by Ryan A.
- Sep 15, 2006
- Comments (1)
- Share Story
Purple Carnations at the Hospital
"Do you need a vase for your purple carnations? " asked a gentle voice and I woke up in my hospital bed. It was one of those few rare moments when no one else was in the room with me and I had slipped into slumber. "Yes - these are from a special friend" I managed to say looking at her for the first time. She was a janitor and while clearing the trash can, she had chanced upon the flowers. But why would she care? And she said 'purple carnations' precisely. I asked her if she likes flowers. Her eyes lit up and she spoke in excited bursts. She LOVES flowers and in her garden, every flower that blooms each day gets a special hug and bye from her before she leaves for work. My God! I told her that I've been getting a lot of flowers and after appreciating the boquets ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by earthling
- Sep 15, 2006
- Comments (6)
- Share Story
Kindness on my Doorstep
I came home from work one day to find some business cards and a card holder in the street. Not much, but I figured the person might want them so I called the number only to find out the person was a seasonal employee. No worries, I thought I would just throw the cards out since they didn't seem to be of much value. A few hours later I saw a police car driving down the street, which is unusual. As I went out to see what was going on I saw an envelope on my front porch. It was a package of food stamps or food checks for mothers with young children. There were enough checks to last through October or November and interestingly the name matched the name from the business cards. I called the office that issues the checks, but they were closed so I called one ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by mrgreen
- Sep 14, 2006
- Comments (4)
- Share Story
Window Seat
I was on the second leg of my trip from Oakland to New Mexico--Phoenix to Albuquerque. Phoenix was excrutiatingly hot--110 degrees! I had a window seat and there was another fairly petite girl sitting in the aisle seat.
At the last minute, a very tall man came to our row--he was the intended middle inhabitant of our little row. He looked flustered and none to thrilled to be in the middle seat--who is really, right? I immediately thought that this was a person to tag--however he was on the phone so I had to wait to tag him. As soon as he got off, i asked if he wanted the window seat. He said "For real?" I said absolutely. He had a smile on his face the rest of the flight, as did I.
- Posted by soulsista
- Sep 14, 2006
- Add Comment
- Share Story
Teaching Youth at a Shelter about Kindness
I am a teacher at a shelter for homeless and street involved youth. As a class we plan group acticities to help spread kindness. In June, we went to our city's waterfront on a very hot day and gave out bottles of water and cans of pop as well as Smile Cards. It was truly amazing!
- Posted by Kathi Lukasik
- Sep 13, 2006
- Add Comment
- Share Story
Puppy Love
"Charlie" was a Boxer dog whose life was turned upside-down by divorce. His human parents split, and he went to live with the husband, while his female companion went to live with the wife. After a few months, the husband left Charlie with friends and left town. After a few weeks, the friends tracked down the wife and she took Charlie to live with her. Unfortunately, the wife lived with her elderly mother, who didn't like Charlie (probably because he belonged to her ex-son-in-law?). Charlie came into the rescue program that my husband and I volunteer for, and we became his foster family while he waited for his forever home to find him. At 5 years old, Charlie was pretty set in his ways. He was not a very happy dog, was somewhat overweight, not very active, and was rather bossy. Our two young dogs (both under 2) spent several weeks being ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by Sherri
- Sep 13, 2006
- Add Comment
- Share Story
An Inspiring Comment: "I was tagged"
I was "tagged" at my current job and after visiting your website, I decided that I wanted to start spreading the word like many people are doing. In my part-time job, I have the occassion to meet many people and would like to start passing the smiley cards out as much as I can. At a recent outing over the Labor Day weekend with my part-time job, I made copies of the front of your card on plain typing paper, cut them out, and gave one to all the workers helping with the event. It brought happy faces to everyone throughout the day as they taped them to their terminals and in front of their desks for our customers to see. I will be joining the enterprise full-time very soon as I am leaving my current job. I will have the occasion to meet even more people as I will be covering quite a bit of the state of Arizona in my new position as the "Director of Marketing and Promotions".
- Posted by Clyde
- Sep 12, 2006
- Add Comment
- Share Story
Bridge Toll Tradition
My finace and I were approaching the toll bridge that we cross often as we go to visit her Mother. We paid our toll and the toll of the car behind us which we did not know. This is a custom that we had adopted from my mother that passed away in 2003. But I got tagged with a smile card the day before at the light rail staiton and had it in my front pocket. So we asked the toll attendant to please take our money for the car behind us and give them the smile card as they passed through. We hope they pass it on. I ordered cards and plan to use them to chear up staff at work and pass the message to as many people as possible.
- Posted by Frank
- Sep 12, 2006
- Comments (2)
- Share Story
Lugging Laptops
I never realized one tag would lead to another. I was in the midwest sometime back to help my friend pack and move (out of the country) and found out she had a couple of old laptops and cellphones she had to get rid of. I remembered that the recycle centers in CA are among the best for old electronics - they get dismantled only as the last resort - usually they find a new home for them. So I lugged back a couple of laptops and a cellphone - which will hopefully find use in someone else's life :)
- Posted by kundavai
- Sep 11, 2006
- Comments (1)
- Share Story
An Inspiring Comment
I was given a smile card a few weeks ago and I absoloutely love the idea. I really enjoy doing nice things for pepople, and its good to know there are other people who support it as well. I live in a dorm, and everyone on my floor uses the same microwave. Needless to say, it gets very dirty. The janitor is so sweet and never says anything negative about it. I was going to clean out the microwave and counter around it and leave some cookies and a card for her right before she gets there. also, I was going to leave quarters and a card in the washing machine and dryer for some people who may be short on money. My dog recently passed away, so I was going to donate a bunch of unused dog food, treats, and toys with a few cards to my local animal shelter. I'm always giving whatever food I have in my car (fast food, apples, soda, water, cookies, etc.) to homless people I see at intersections when I'm driving, and it would be nice to have cards to give them a smile as well. You guys are awesome! thanks for the cards.
- Posted by Sam T.
- Sep 11, 2006
- Add Comment
- Share Story
Free Entrance to Football Games
When some young kids showed up at our doorsteps for a fundraiser for their sports team, my brother asked 'em which school they went to. It turns out that both my brother and I are alumni for that same school, so we made a little donation. While we didn't expect anything in return, we got a little "gold card" that gave us entry into all football games. Now, no one in our family has time to go watch a high school football but we didn't just want to throw the card away either. So it was sitting nice and pretty on our staircase. Last week, I randomly meet a young girl who is aspiring to be the student-body president. She was asking my advice on a few things (my brother was actually the ASB president during his years). And then all of a sudden, a flash bulb turned on in my head ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by twiceblessed
- Sep 10, 2006
- Add Comment
- Share Story
Use Your Talents
I love helping people who are depressed. I was abused for many years beginning from childhood, a 14 year abusive marriage to an alcoholic. He criticized me DAILY, was unfaithful & battered me, whenever his anger got to a certain point. I had absolutely no self-esteem. I constantly worried or was in fear. I was sad all the time. I felt I was lower than a rock sitting on the ground. I began to search for mental wellness, found it, did the hard work of re-training my mind. I actually have learned to choose not to feel upset in situations I would have fallen apart in the past. I have learned how to remain calm, not feel offended or attack, & actually begin to minister to those that get a kick out of belittling others. I have shared this knowledge with many people along the way, especially in ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by Lilli
- Sep 10, 2006
- Comments (2)
- Share Story
New town, new school, and Lady bugs!
I recently moved to a new town...like a week ago...and started my first year in college! I didn't know anyone, but I met this girl while I was working on the school newspaper. She, like myself, is very clumsy! The third day of school, while I was at work, she came in and had this huge moon boot on. She had broken her toe. The next day they put a cast on it. She was really bummed out. So I offered to come over later that night, and hang out with her. What she didn't know was that I am an artist, so when I got there, we were talking and she kept talking about how ugly her cast was, and I said, "Well, let's change that!" I grabbed a permanant marker and within an hour her bright red cast was covered in lady bugs! Her favorite thing! We had so much fun, and guess what, now I have a friend! Just goes to prove that if you go out of your way to be nice to people, it can be rewarding!
- Posted by Kat Callaway
- Sep 8, 2006
- Comments (2)
- Share Story
An Inspiring Comment
I am the Manager of Hospital Operations, working steady nights in a busy metropolitan hospital. I plan to leave cards with coffee money, snack money, and anything else I can think of, to boost morale and cheer the very stressed staff in all the units and on all the floors. I found a card by our coffee machine in the Emergency Room. What a GREAT idea!!! I'll keep it going!!
God Bless!!!
- Posted by Molly Sinclair
- Sep 7, 2006
- Comments (3)
- Share Story
