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Helping Out A Mother In Need

Today while I was at work, a friend of mine came in my office, closed the door and starting weeping uncontrollably. It seems her ex-husband had hurt her daughter. The daughter mentioned it to a teacher and it got reported to child services! My friend is down on her luck, and lives pay check to pay check and no credit cards. We have had  a tough winter and heating bills are piling up and the cupboards are almost bare! It seems the child protective services will be making visits to both houses/ hers and ex-husbands. She was crying because there was leak in her  ceiling and not much food in the house....and she was afraid they would think she was unfit.  I tried to talk to her and calm her down and tell her that her house is clean and neat, she didn't hurt her daughter, so please don't worry.   ... Read Full Story >>

World Kindness Week Day 2 - Alvin, The School Bus Driver

I took the bus to school every day when I was in grade school. Alvin, our bus driver, came by every morning at 8:00 to pick us up.   We were lower income families. My parents barely made ends meet for them and five of us kids.   Alvin picked up around twenty kids in our area and dropped us off after school. About once a month he would make a stop at the local drive-in. Someone would come out and ask each of us if we wanted an ice cream or a drink. Alvin would pay for the whole bus out of his own pocket.  The kindness that he showed was amazing.  We didn't get treats like that too often and they are fondly remembered.     I remember him picking us up at the end of the school year and taking us to his home for a barn dance. He would provide drinks and ... Read Full Story >>

Helping Others Helps Me

Today at Parrys bus-stand, I helped two ladies to unload a bag filled with clothes. The bag looked shabby and slightly dirty and it was difficult to carry. One of the ladies was carrying a small baby. They were from the poorer sections of society.

I unloaded the bag (without a proper handle) and carried for 100 yards and placed it in the other bus they were taking home. Fortunately, although my pants were soiled by the effort my heart certainly was not!

Helping helps me. What a privilege !

A Classroom's Kind Acts Campaign

I am a teacher in an urban school and many of our students have a very difficult life. You can see and hear it in their voices. I've been working with many of them on becoming more giving of themselves without expecting anything in return -- kindness. I think it is working.

I have several former students who have come back to tell me that they want to help in my next community project or bring kindness ideas of their own that they want to do. I never tell them no and watching their smiles is all I need in payment. We have painted murals, collected items for shelters, planted flowers and read to the elderly.

Now, we are expanding it to every part of our lives. The students are going to make a committment to do acts of kindness. We will start with 2 a week and build on it. It is called our Kind Acts Campaign. I look forward to posting many stories about my students in the coming months for all you to enjoy.

The Blessing Of Losing My Iphone

I am shopping in the local farmers market in San Isidro, Costa Rica on a sunny Thursday morning.  I love this market it is, I believe, the second largest in the country. The selection of produce is exceptional! I dropped my car off earlier a few blocks away at Firestone to get my oil changed. An hour into my shopping after collecting all my organic produce, I reached in my purse for my phone. I dig around searching and searching.... no phone!! At first I feel the butterflies in my stomach as I think since the zipper was not zipped on my bag that perhaps my phone fell out or got picked up by wondering hands. I quickly reigned in my thoughts. It is only a phone. I know that my thoughts effect my physical state of being. If the phone was gone then so be it, all is well. It can ... Read Full Story >>

How small acts of kindness can inspire others give back

Reading the acts of kindness here always inspire me but I have had a hard time finding people to anonymously help. So, I decided to volunteer with the Salvation Army for this very specific program they have called "Ministere de la Rue." It's basically a soup kitchen on wheels.     Yesterday was my first day and there were about sixty people waiting in line in the cold. They waited for about 30-40 minutes in order to get a bag that contained a box of cakes, a couple of sandwiches, half a baguette, a bowl of soup, and a cup of coffee or juice.    They were all obviously very appreciative of the Salvation Army food truck. Some waited an extra long time until everyone got a bag, in the hope that they might get a second bag. They call it the "second serving."   There was a very old and tiny woman there who got ... Read Full Story >>

School Friends Step-Up The Generosity

My friend and I had an assignment for one of our classes to do a random act of kindness and write and essay about the experience. We were inspired to take  the assignment even farther and turned it in to a kindness project to recognise people who serve our community. We scoped out a number of places where people serve the community in our town.  Then we baked (and baked) for 6 hours: cookies, cakes, cupcakes, pies, and brownies.  When we were done baking, we began dropping them off.  We went to two fire-stations, a hospital, the post office, the police department, and we even chased down some bus drivers for three blocks :) Everyone's reactions were just amazing. The bus drivers hugged us and were on the verge of tears. Everybody was so thankful when it was us thanking them for what they do.  Policemen and women, doctors, nurses, bus drivers, firefighters - these are the people who ... Read Full Story >>

For Your Time, Effort And Smiles, Thank You!

Today I received my very own set of Smile Cards from HelpOthers.org. Yay! I opened my envelope with great excitement and found my promised ten cards along with a larger card with ideas printed on it. Immediately I started planning my next kind act – the cards truly have an inspiring effect! It was then I realized the value of these cards and of websites such as HelpOthers.org. Not only does it inspire you, but receiving these cards, knowing that there are others out there with the same aim to be kind to others as I myself have, really made me smile! And that’s what it’s all about, isn’t it? In other words, the Smile Cards have already done a great deal: they made me smile! And in the future I hope each and every single card I hand out will make someone else smile too. I’d like to thank HelpOthers for offering ... Read Full Story >>

Hospital Cheer

I dropped off two cheer-up gift bags (socks, bottled water, puzzle books, hand cream, lip balm...) and 15 packs that had tissues, toothbrushes, toothpaste, travel size shampoo & conditioners, lip balm, lotion... To my local hospital.

The lovely nurses gave me a hug, and said "I remember you from last time! We gave out the cheer up bags to patients straight away, and we kept a few in the cupboard. We gave those ones out on Mothers Day to patients without visitors" yay, it was nice to have feedback on how a small thing cheered someone up.

Doing Something Good for 40 Days

Usually for Lent, I give up chocolate or coffee or something like that. This year, I decided that instead of giving something up, I would do something good each day for the 40 days of Lent.  I came up with an idea someone once mentioned on this website. 

I bought two boxes of note cards and each day I am sending a card through "Snail Mail" to someone with a little quote and a short story in it along with a SMILE CARD. 

I come in contact with many parents at my job (I work at a school) and lots of them could surely use some encouragement and kind words.  I hope this puts some smiles on their faces.

Placemats for Seniors Who Made Our Existence Possible

We make crafts with the children of the community at our local outreach center every week. Once a month, we make crafts for others, and I have a comment box so the children can give their own ideas. The children LOVE making crafts for others, they have shared lots of reasons for doing so, and we often go over the reasons we are giving to others.

One of the young children wanted to make placemats for seniors.  We have done this before, but this little girl was not previously in attendance :). We created placemats, and I asked her why she wanted to make them for seniors.

She responded by saying something that I will never forget. From a 6 year-old's mouth: "We are everything because of those that lived here before us." Amazing! We then went to our local seniors' home, and the kids set the tables, including the placemats that they made. They also sang to the seniors during the seniors' lunch. We had many smiles...seniors and children alike! It was wonderful!!

I hope that others do this also...it was very enjoyable for all involved!

First Thank You in 50 Years

In my keynote speeches and workshops, Care is an acronym I use for the elements of a caring, creative, joyful workplace and home.  The “A” in CARE stands for “Appreciation for ALL.”  As I speak about appreciation, I use this quote by Albert Schweitzer: "Sometimes our light goes, out but is blown again into a flame by an encounter with another human being. Each of us owes the deepest thanks to those who have rekindled this inner light."   Then I ask my audiences to please shut their eyes and think about someone, who at some time in their lives, has rekindled their inner light. I leave the room in silence for several minutes, and it is always a profound experience as they remember the Joy they received from being appreciated by someone when they needed it the most.  Afterwards, I ask them to write down the name of the person they thought ... Read Full Story >>

This Simple Act Of Kindness Left Her Feeling Connected and In Tears

Hi everyone. This is just a short moment in time, but I wanted to share it because it made me feel so good. I was at the library the other day volunteering, and our library is a place where the homeless often spend their days as well. As I was putting books up for our book sale, I glanced up and there were a small group of homeless people sitting in chairs near the door. One man caught my eye and he seemed to start to look down, almost as if he were embarrassed or ashamed. I locked eyes with him and smiled, and he just beamed back at me. I got tears in my eyes and waved to him before ducking back into the volunteer room trying not to cry. I hear such negative stuff sometimes from library patrons about these down-on-their-luck people; how they smell bad, or shouldn't be there ... Read Full Story >>

A Small Deed But A Big Inner Reward

Yesterday I was shopping at our local grocery store, and I found some money and a receipt.  As I was standing there, holding it in my hand, I was wondering if there was any way to figure out how to return it to the proper owner.  

Then I noticed the person had gotten the employee discount, buying a sandwich of some sort.  Earlier I had stood at the deli counter forever and I remembered seeing one of the employees buy her lunch.  I felt so bad for her that she had lost her money, so I went to the service counter and explained the situation.  The manager had worked there forever and I trusted she would return it to the proper person.

Even though it was only a small amount of money, I hadn't earned it.  It may sound weird, but, as I walked away from the counter I felt so good about that tiny thing.  It made me smile all the way home as I pictured the employee having her money returned to her!

The True 7 Wonders Of The World

Junior high school students in Chicago were studying the Seven Wonders of the World. At the end of the lesson, the students were asked to list what they considered to be the Seven Wonders of the World. Though there was some disagreement, the following received the most votes: 1. Egypt's Great Pyramids 2. The Taj Mahal in India 3. The Grand Canyon in Arizona 4. The Panama Canal 5. The Empire State Building 6. St. Peter's Basilica 7. China's Great Wall While gathering the votes, the teacher noted that one student, a quiet girl, hadn't turned in her paper yet. So she asked the girl if she was having trouble with her list. The quiet girl replied, "Yes, a little. I couldn't quite make up my mind because there were so many." The teacher said, "Well, tell us what you have, and maybe we can help." The girl hesitated, then read, "I think the Seven Wonders of the World ... Read Full Story >>

Mother and Daughter Spend the Day Caring for Vulnerable Dogs and Cats

My 15 year old daughter is my inspiration. Last year she and I rescued several hurt street puppies and we had the stray momma dog vaccinated and neutered by a local animal rescue here in Mumbai, India where we live as expats. We have been meaning to go volunteer at the shelter ever since. I was recently feeling the nudge to serve more, so I scheduled a Saturday visit. My daughter had social invites and was torn, but she also felt the nudge to visit the shelter so planned to go join her friends later in the day. We piled up old blankets, sheets and pillows to take along and donate. On arriving and touring we encountered 500 dogs and 200 cats being cared for at this shelter. After the tour we served meals and gave snuggles to the puppies in the sick/injured puppy ward. We held and comforted those who would clearly ... Read Full Story >>

Giving is receiving

"You take debit, don't you?" the customer ahead of me in line at the thrift store asked, as her purchases were totaled. Since it's a new location for "Hope's Attic" (don't you just love that name?), they hadn't gotten all the nuances of different payment methods sorted out yet. The two women were together, and honestly, looked like they led challenging hard-working lives. Only had a few dollars cash between them. "Do you mind if I pay the balance?" I inquired. "Oh, no, that's okay...". "Please, I'd like to, if it's alright, with you..." And then, we looked into each other's eyes, smiled and she agreed. Had a small discussion about how giving is really like receiving; how sometimes we are the giver and sometimes the receiver. Even the cashier got into the conversation, "That's about the nicest thing I've ever seen in here! And we see a lot of great stuff." Gave everyone a Smile card and ... Read Full Story >>

Visiting The Orphanage

My aunt  took me to visit the local orphanage and I spent some time with the children. I couldn't sleep that night for thinking about them.
 
I have made up my mind to do something for them. I would like to go there every month and spend some time with them. 
 
I went back there on my birthday, distributed sweets and spent some time with them. The last time I had gone there they asked me my name and they talked very well. A month later, on my birthday visit, they remembered my name which really amazed me.

They prayed for me that day and I cried like anything. They don't know much about me but their concern made me feel very cared for.  We have many things from children. I am glad I got to give a little back by helping the orphanage. 

Finding a wallet in a Ferry to Cape Cod

About 2 weeks ago, my husband and I went to meet with our Bostonian daughter in Provincetown, Cape Cod. When we took her to the ferry to go home, I found a wallet, filled with credit cards, driver's license and cash. I looked at the license photo to see if the person was in the line for the ferry, but no luck. My husband suggested that I leave the wallet with the dock master, but I was apprehensive. We then went to a nearby post office and mailed the wallet back to the owner (with my return address on the label). My joy came yesterday when I received a card from the owner, thanking me for my thoughtfulness and wishing me blessings.

Renewing My Father's Smile

Last Sunday I visited my parents as I do every Sunday. My 84 year old Dad seemed unusually worried, so I asked him if anything was the matter. He silently gave me a letter from his motor insurance company to read. In two sentences they informed him that they would no longer be able to insure his small truck and that he can call the undersigned for further clarification. I told him not to worry and that I would take care of the matter.  The next day I called the undersigned to get clarification. To sum it up, it did not matter to the insurance company that my Dad spent 50 years paying the premium, but what mattered was that in his first accident (last August) the company had to fork out € 8,942. From then on for three days I visited or phoned almost every broker or insurance company to try and ... Read Full Story >>