Search Results for 'popular' (3456 matches)

Freeing a Trolley for an Elderly Woman

       Walking through town yesterday I spotted an elderly woman having a spot of bother. She was trying to release a supermarket trolley from the trolley park and not managing.  You need to slip a pound coin into the release slot and this disengages a little length of chain enabling you to use the trolley. But, try as she might, this lady couldn't loosen that chain.     "You all right?" I asked. "Yes, thanks," she smiled back. But I didn't take the hint. I stood a few seconds longer and still that chain wouldn't loosen. "Let me," I said, reaching over. And I pushed her coin just a little further into the mechanism. The chain released and that was that.      "Oh, thank you," she said. "I'm not as strong as I used to be."      And THAT is really what this is about!  I hadn't even noticed the strength it ... Read Full Story >>

Saving The Smiling Turtle

It was a hot day and my mom and I were driving down our street. Mom saw a moving lump right in front of the car and screeched to a stop. 

I stepped out and saw a turtle limping along the road. My mom got out after me and we worked together to lift this heavy creature of of the road onto the grassy strip at the edge of the road. 

It seemed to me like the turtle smiled a little before slowly wandering off into the grass. I laughed before running back to the car.

One Teen's Creative Mission on Behalf of School Kids

Teen Creates App So Bullied Kids Never Have To Eat Alone

School lunch can be intensely lonely when you don't have anyone to sit with. A new app aims to help change that.

Isn't this a great idea?!

The way that it works is it's a free lunch-planning app where kids can find lunch tables if they feel like they have nowhere to go. Pretty much, kids can sign up as ambassadors for a Sit With Us club and agree to post open lunches so that anyone who has the app and has nowhere to go can find a table and, hopefully, make some new friends.

Click on link to read more:

http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2016/09/15/494074992/teen-creates-app-so-bullied-kids-never-have-to-eat-alone

Bagged by an Anonymous Act of Kindness

I was at the grocery store last Friday buying some milk, bread, and juice for my family of 3. At the check out the total came to about $25. I swiped my card but it didnt work. I tried again. No luck. I was quickly becoming embarassed as my 18 month old became fidgety and I scrambled through my purse looking for another way to pay.

I only had 6 one dollar bills in my purse. I asked the cashier to move on to the next person while I tried the ATM. That didnt work either. I finally resolved to write a check but when I came back to the checkout the cashier told me that my groceries had already been paid for!

Tears instantly came to my eyes. I have no idea who the person was that paid for my groceries.  They have no idea how much their act of kindness meant to me. Things like that give me hope and faith to carry on through the day.

Thankful for a Mother-In-Law's Advice 9 Years Later

When my husband and I became engaged some nine years ago, I felt slightly perplexed when my mother-in-law  offered us the following advice: "Be kind to each other."

I thought that was so obvious at the time, but over the years it has stuck with me and I have realised that it is one of the best pieces of advice I have ever received.

It is all too easy to take our nearest and dearest for granted and not show them the appreciation that they deserve.

I recently thanked my mother-in-law (mummy 2, as she prefers to be called) for those words.  It was nine years late, but I always think: better late than never. I told her just how much I still appreciate her words of wisdom that she shared with us all those years ago. I could see that I made her day too! :)

Beauty Tips for Your Soul

Here are a few primping tips to increase the beauty of your soul: A dear old lady was ... Read Full Story >>

Live As Though Everything Is A Miracle

The following passage is a healthy prescription of how we can approach life. It is not about being famous or being wealthy or about our good looks. Truly, it is all about love. There are times when we feel as if we are separated from the rest. This illusion creates a mental prison. Hence, we should strive to internally liberate ourselves by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living things. "Open your heart to others and try to understand, When someone reaches for you, hold out to them your hand, Follow your heart, no matter what other people say, Do things that make you able to smile throughout your day, Treat other people, the way you would like them to treat you, Do what you know is right and to your heart and self stay true, Remember what life is all about, it is how you make people feel, What you do, where you go, and making dreams become real, Helping people through, in hard times of ... Read Full Story >>

Fresh Clothes And Dignity

Through my work at a public service organization I often encountered people in dire circumstance. Like the Native American woman who staggered into our lobby.   She had obviously soiled herself, been drinking heavily, and was disorientated. Luckily, someone had told her she could probably sit in our lobby and be safe.   A colleague approached me, wondering what I was going to do about this problem and how I was going to get her out of there. I was startled by this brash attitude and all I could think was, "There, but for the grace of God, go I".     At first this inebriated woman was argumentative, swearing, and waving her arms about. So, I sat down beside her and gave her a coffee. With the warm drink in her hands she seemed to settle down some. I asked her name and where she was from. She was not from the city but from ... Read Full Story >>

Parents Are Precious

Venkatesh Balasubramaniam (who works for IIT) describes how his gesture of booking an air ticket for his father brought forth a rush of emotions and made him (Venkatesh) realize how much we all take for granted when it comes to our parents. My parents left for our native land on Thursday and we went to the airport to see them off. In fact, my father had never traveled by air before, so I just took this opportunity to ensure he experienced his first flight. In spite of being asked to book tickets by train, I got them tickets on Jet Airways.  The moment I handed over the tickets to him, he was surprised to see that I had booked them by air. The excitement was very apparent on his face. Just like a school boy, he was preparing himself for that day. We all went to the airport and eagerly enjoyed the ... Read Full Story >>

Kindness Knocks on the Front Door

Two years ago an African man from Malawi, Elias, arrived at my sister’s home in the rough, bush country of South Africa with nothing but the shirt on his back. He was hoping to come to South Africa to find employment in order to support his family in Malawi. Little did he realize my sister at that time was struggling to keep her body and soul together. Nevertheless, Elias was given permission to stay on the property with the understanding that she was unable to help him financially and he would have to find “piece work” employment to support himself. As unemployment is rife, Elias was unable to find work immediately, so my sister taught him how to grow organic vegetables, sew and bake. Elias is keen to learn whatever he can to take the knowledge back to Malawi with him once he goes home. Elias finally found employment but my sister hit ... Read Full Story >>

Where Does Kindness Start? With Us...

Recently at the gas station...I was walking in to Pre-Pay before being able to pump gas into my car. As I approached the door to go in to pay, there was a woman coming out.   I was about 15 feet away and she stood there, waiting and holding the door for me to enter. Usually people are in such a hurry that they dash out and sometimes even to the point of being rude and mowing me down.  I smiled and said "Thank You, you didn't have to do that"  and her reply was "No problem, take your time." Next we are both at our vehicles filling gas and she finished first. She hopped in her van and was getting ready to leave. I noticed her gas compartment was still open and the cap was dangling down.  I quickly scooted to her van and tapped  on it as she was starting ... Read Full Story >>

Inspiration From my Daughter

I thought that was so sweet of her! It seems she not only reaches out to her friends these days but to her teachers and other children as well. I thought that was awesome! 

'A Young Lady' Called Charlotte

I have seen Charlotte waiting for a bus many times. She is in her 80's. She is petite and thin. She lives in a little Fold for the elderly near my home. I have got to know her as I stop and give her a lift any time I see her. Even if I am going the opposite direction or I have just nipped out for a pint of milk, I still give her a lift. She is circumspect though and would be careful who she would take a lift from. When I changed my car she was used to seeing my silver car pull up beside her but was wary the first time I pulled up in my new white car. Charlotte looks elderly and frail but last time I gave her a lift she told me she'd been on a helicopter ride, photos even shown  to prove it! She ... Read Full Story >>

A Five Rupee Formula for Joy

On my way out the building in the morning, I search my pockets for 5 rupee coins. If I have one, I go to the shop downstairs and buy 5 packets of Gems-- an Indian version of M&Ms. There are 3 Gems per packet, giving me 14 chances to make someone smile (there would be 15 but invariably the first Gem ends up in my own mouth!). On the first day, I gave one each to the two youngs sons of my dhobi (washerman), and to the boy who lives in the makeshift shack in front of my building. Their hands were really dirty so I put them straight into their mouths. I thought for a second about giving them an impromptu lesson in hand-washing, but they are too young to understand Hindi and I haven't learned enough Kannada to explain properly. Next time I'll pick up the basics, and use ... Read Full Story >>

Feeding Two Teens From The Dollar Menu

I picked my daughter up from school today. She was hungry and asked if we could stop at McDonald's so she could have a quick bite to eat. I said I didn't have much money, but she could order from the dollar menu.    As we pulled up to the drive-thru window. A young man, about 16-18 years old, approached my car. He had a sad story about his mom being hospital and him having no money or food.    I asked him, "What is it you want? Food?" He said he didn't care, anything would be good.     So, I told him to go ahead of me and wait, that I would order something and bring it to him.   My daughter asked, "Mom, do you believe him?" I said, "I don't know if he's telling the truth or not, but I know he must be hungry or he wouldn't be begging at McDonald's."    So I ... Read Full Story >>

They help me, I help them

It was raining hard and nearing dusk. I was late for an appointment in a nearby city that I knew only by GPS. And now my phone had died. The usual interstate exits were closed. I couldn't see, ir was raining so hard. I couldn't figure out how to get where I was going or how to let my appointment know I was likely not going to make it there. I stopped at a McDonald's in an impoverished part of town and walked up to what appeared to be a mother and her teen daughter. "I'm sorry, but do you mind, is it possible for me to look up a number on your phone and then call the place and let them know I'm lost?" She handed me her phone and then told me she was lucky she had her phone, it was getting ready to be turned off because shedidn't have ... Read Full Story >>

Kindness - Just Do It!

I drove into the supermarket parking lot and there were 2 homeless young people at the entrance with the standard "homeless and hungry" sign.  I felt the usual hopeless feeling and irritation.  I decided that I would drive out the other exit so I wouldn't have to see them when I left.  While shopping in the store I choose some really great cherries and proceeded to purchase freely.  When I was leaving the store, heading to my car, I saw the young homeless woman going around the parking lot asking for help.  No one seemed to being offering help and for a moment I could feel her hopelessness.  I was still set on driving out the other entrance believing that I shouldn't helpout and continue the homeless cycle.  As I was leaving the parking lot I thought of a talk I had listened to the night before - about kindness and how even a small ... Read Full Story >>

Kindness Ripples Spread Through Arby's

As I stood in a busy lunch line at Arby's I was becoming increasingly worried I would be late getting back to the office. A grandmother and her grandson were keeping the only available cashier busy. The woman had difficulty with all the choices and, after finally placing the order, became very flustered trying to find her cash or her credit card.  While this was going on, the cashier had the most gentle and benevolent expression on his face, never once making the woman feel under pressure. His mood transformed my own. I caught his eye and quietly indicated I would pay for the order. He understood and took care of it without embarrassing the woman. Then when I eventually placed my order he paid for my lunch!  As I stood aside waiting for my order two other customers spoke to me about what had happened and said they would also "pay it forward" as a ... Read Full Story >>

A Story Of Four Siblings Who Wanted to Go to School

I usually get up late when I am home  because I work until midnight. A couple of days ago, my Mom told me that 4 kids had come early in the morning for the last 2 days  asking "Is Shan bro up?" and when she replied and asked if they had a message for me, they said "Nothing" and left. I told  my mom if they come again then wake me up. The next day, they came again but a little later. Mom woke me up and this is how I met these sweet kids. They just said " We want to study in your school", I smiled and said, "Kids! I don't have any school, but I will enroll you in a good school". I went to their home and met their father. He told me that his kids: (Aneela, Shahzad, Saad and Nawab) want to get to a standard school but ... Read Full Story >>

A Moment That Changed My Life

My wife and I were on our weekly Wal-Mart trip when I noticed a young man standing at the traffic light holding a handwritten cardboard sign that read, "Hungry, Please Help." My heart started to hurt -- I have seen people in need before holding hand-made signs all over town asking for a job, food, money, etc. I guess I just never paid any attention before, shame on me. We got through the checkout lane, and I walked over to the McDonalds's inside the store. My wife said to me, "You want McDonald's, I thought we were going to eat at Wendy's?" since we usually stop at Wendy's or Arby's for a quick bite to eat during our weekly trips. I replied, "It's not for me." I bought some food, and a bottle of cold water (it was really hot and humid out), and I noticed that this young man looked very ... Read Full Story >>