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The Balloon Man

I had a wonderful day at a country show. Noticed the man selling balloons. Always feel bad for them as they stand all day in the cold, the heat or the rain… I thought ‘this is my chance for another bit of kindness’…so went up to him and asked him if he’d give some child a free balloon if I paid for it. He agreed. As I was walking away a father with a boy approached him and I could hear the conversation behind my back: ‘How much do they cost?’…’Well, nothing because someone has just paid for it for you--’Oh’…Thank you!’ Later I went to get him a cold drink-it was very hot-and took it to him to thank him for having been honest and done it. We started talking. He told me that when he was young he’d done lots for charity, especially marathons. He has now problems standing ... Read Full Story >>

A Generous Gesture That Made A Dream Come True

I had a dream for over a year, to attend the Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen in December. I had even reserved a hostel room a year in advance  because I so wanted to be there. I had worked very hard to arrange things, but was having trouble raising money for the trip. I asked one of my MBA professors who is connected in investing circles to ask, if I were to write an appeal letter, would he please send it to his contacts? He apologized, because he said there is not much money available right now because of the economy. Then he paused, and asked me where I was flying from. When I told him, he asked me if he could help me out with flight miles to Copenhagen for the trip. I was awestruck by the offer. I hurried to tell him that I had not mentioned this to ask ... Read Full Story >>

A Mile Of Trash

Today I walked the mile to the end of the main road by our house, to the beautiful corn-fields and farm-land.

As I prepared to walk the mile back I pulled out a big clear trash-bag. Then I started filling it with the beer cans, cigarette packs, lottery tickets and other trash that people throw out their car windows. 

Along the way a couple of friends and strangers stopped to thank me for doing it. But I also hope that many more people noticed what I was doing and perhaps they will think twice before throwing things "away" next time. As we know there is no "away." 

I now have a giant bag of trash and recyclables to sort out to keep the kindness going. I love doing this for my neighborhood and for our community.

Delving into Difficulty

The head librarian seemed sort of distracted and as we talked, it became apparent that she was grieving for her mother that had recently transitioned.

I stopped the setting out of materials and my busyness in getting our coloring meet organized to stop and listen: to really open my heart and hear the pain and love that she was willing to share.

Although her mother had been in hospice, still that final farewell (from this physical existence) is always a challenge.

We hugged for a good while.

Remember to take the time, my friends, to delve into those "difficult" parts when someone needs to share, is a privilege, their confidence.

Sending blessings of comfort and strength for all those facing such recent challenges.

Kindness To Grand Mother 🙏

There are 2 glasses of tea for me. I told grand Mother that we both drink cup of tea each. But grand Mother said you drink one now and one later. Finally, I said let us drink one cup each. I put some biscuits for Grand Mother. People here are doing big big kind acts. I am just kind to Grand Mother 🙏 My small kind act is cup of tea and biscuits to Grand Mother 🙏

Three Feet of Snow and a Very Kind Neighbor

It's no secret that we've had some pretty crazy weather in the Maryland area this past winter. We had 15 inches of snow during one month followed by 28 more inches. Whenever it snowed like that, I packed my things up and stayed at my mom's house, both to help her with shoveling and for the ease of getting my car out of the driveway to get to work rather than attempting it from my mountain side driveway. I did about 4 hours of shovelling one day and only managed to dig us out of the house and a small walking path to and around 3 sides of my car.  To make better headway the next day, I set the alarm and got out there preparing to do the necessary 3 or 4 shovelling rounds before being able to relax and watch the Super Bowl. My whole body was in pain from the ... Read Full Story >>

Small Gestures in the Workplace

One day, while I was walking to work, I decided to bring some flowers that I had picked from my garden that morning. I came across a random stranger, and was inspired to give the bunch to him with a smile card.  Struck by the sense of joy I felt from giving flowers to another person, and maybe brightening his day, I wanted to do it again. When I got to my office, I had the idea of anonymously leaving flowers around the workplace. Sometimes, the impersonal atmosphere of the building where I work numbs my spirits a little. It's a nice building, with great light, but it just feels a little sterile sometimes. I figured lots of people might feel the same way, so why not put a little beauty there, and throw in an inspirational quote while I'm at it? After all, who doesn't like flowers? So, for the past month, I've been putting flowers ... Read Full Story >>

Chapatis and Chili

My mother has always had a soft heart for beggars and anyone in need. When she lived in India, people would come to see her from far off villages. They would bring herbs and some organic home grown vegetables. She always cherished such gifts, and cooked them at home with love. After reading a kindness story, I was reminded of her and a story she told me once: Years ago, when my mother was in the early months of her pregnancy with me, she was very sick. She could not eat anything-- any food or drink would make her nauseous, and give her an upset stomach. In this condition, sleepy and hungry, she yearned to eat and drink--even just water. One afternoon, there was a knock at the door. When she went to open it, she found herself facing an extremely scorching hot day-- the temperature was probably around 40 degrees Celsius. Then she ... Read Full Story >>

Sixth Graders and the Smile Deck

I teach a sixth grade religion class, and today I played the Smile Deck game with my students.  They each left with two kind acts to complete and were very enthusiastic as I handed them regular Smile Cards to go along with the Smile Deck Cards.

One student was able to complete one of her acts that day itself, when class ended.  She held the door for those leaving the building, handing out Smile Cards to those who would take them.  It was uncomfortable for her at first (12 years old is an awkward age, at best), but she got the hang of it and started to enjoy her 15 minutes as 'Door Woman'!

I am excited to hear about how the other children's acts of kindness go.

I hope that my take on the ways we can “take care of God's creation” will sink into these kids, and they will carry forward the idea of embracing kindness as a meaningful part of life.

This is just the beginning for me!!  Thanks for the forum of inspiration!

A Story Of Kindness As A Gift

I began a new practice last year, which I have continued. After many years of being on the receiving end of gifts from my students, especially around this time of the year, I asked my students to forgo giving me anything. Rather than getting me something that I don't need, I asked them to take that money and make a donation to a non-profit and I gave them names of a few that I like to support. There are so many beings whose basic needs are not even met. I have an abundance of all that is important! Or, I asked them to do an act of kindness and write me a card telling me about it. On Monday a student gave me a card and said, "don't worry, there's no gift card in here." She began my telling her her act of kindness. She volunteered at a hospital and told me about ... Read Full Story >>

Paying Forward With a Pocket of Coins

Today, during the busy lunch rush, an elderly gentleman came up to the counter with his items. As I rang them up he pulled out his wallet and I could hear what sounded like a ton of change jingling around. When I told him the total he nodded and started to count out the bills needed. I noticed that his hands shook forcefully when he did this. When I saw him having trouble trying to get his change out I told him not to worry, that I could cover it. Even though he clearly had the change I used my own to spare him the difficulty. He was so moved by this that when I handed him the receipt he had managed to get a handful of coins and asked me to take what I had given him.  When I said that I was just going to give it to the ... Read Full Story >>

A Moment of Calm

My husband and I were cleaning windows together yesterday. We  have the double-hung windows that you can pull forward and flip, allowing us to clean the inside and the outside surfaces. My husband was washing one window - and it popped out of its frame!  Well, our house is for sale and the last thing we needed was for something to break. He was so upset and tried with all his might to get it back together, using a few less than pleasant words (I am sorry to say). After twenty minutes he still could not get it fixed. That's when my 23 year old son told his dad to walk away for a minute and he would try to fix it with me. It's amazing how you can see things more clearly and do things more easily when you are calm. He and I fixed the window in three minutes! I called ... Read Full Story >>

A Birthday Dinner Becomes an Opportunity to Practice Patience and Kindness

The other day my daughter and I went out for dinner to celebrate her birthday. We went to a place she loves. The restaurant is on top of a hill and when we arrived the sun was setting behind the mountains. The kind waitress met us at the door but mentioned that, without a reservation, we would have to wait a very long time for our order because they were short staffed. She said that it could be over an hour before we would get our order. Well, we decided that we would leave because she strongly advised that we should! We stood outside wondering what we should do next when the owner came out and insisted that we stay! So we went back in. The waitress was right. We waited close to an hour before we got our appetizers! But do you know what? It was ok because we had tea and ... Read Full Story >>

Appreciating The Rare Gems in Our Lives

I met a lady years ago, only twice, but she has stayed in my mind until she died at 97 years of age, a week ago. I asked myself why did she stay with me all these years. She was one of those people who are just so lovely and good. She wasn't bitter when she could have been, wasn't angry, wasn't a gossip, mean, or hard to talk to. She just was a really kind, loving, forgiving person.  When you meet someone and you have an instant connection and feel like this person is a friend, cherish the time. Learn from the time you spend with them. They are like rare gems. I hope to be a rare gem. To cultivate those qualities in myself. To all my lovely rare gems on KS, I am grateful for you. 

 

How I learned [I'm]Perfect in Middle School

   When I think of the word perfect, I think of something only a few can achieve, like high beauty standards, the super-smart girl in my class, or anything that I can compare myself to. For a few weeks now, I have been noticing this one girl who is in a few of my middle school classes. She has fabulous long dark brown hair, big hazel eyes, and the most beautiful face. She always wears the prettiest outfits and seems to be the most popular girl in school, at least in my point of view. It seems like she has a perfect life, lots of friends, all A's, and everything anyone could ever want.    One day, I was in language arts talking to my teacher about one of the upcoming tests, when I saw the girl staring at me in this weird way. I immediately started to freak out and ... Read Full Story >>

A Banana Bread Thank You

We live in a circle of giving in my neighbourhoood; neighbours sharing and looking out for each other.

So, the other day when a plate of banana bread appeared on our doorstep without a note I didn't know who to thank.

Was it Leslie? We often exchange fruits and vegetables from the garden and swap baked goods. I called her. She said it wasn't her.

Was it Carol? She loves our garden veggies! Nope.

Was it Helen? I had stopped by her house with a bag of freshly picked tomatoes and although her daughter had just given us some apple cake a few days earlier she said it wasn't her either.

I was scratching my head in confusion when Helen started talking about how nice it was that my husband and two other neighbourhood men had helped her neighbour move a big mattress into their house the other day.

Then her eyes sparkled and she said, "I know who baked a lot of banana bread! It was Ellen! She wanted to thank your husband for his help with moving the mattress!" 

Mystery solved - and more friends to bake for!

Stories for an Extra Special Listener

 This isn't so much a kindness story as a lovely moment. Every once in a while I go along to a local radio station to record some stories that go out as a 'Thought For The Day'. Usually the sound engineer is very fussy about background noise when we are recording. Sometimes there are other people in the studio and he makes sure they know silence is the order of the moment. Today there were two people in the studio. One was teenage boy working at a computer keyboard. The other was a woman who might have been his mother or his helper. We exchanged some pleasantries and she asked if I was doing 'Thought For The Day'. I said, "Yeah," but joked I was self-conscious. "So, nobody listen," I said in a mock raised voice. Then we began to record. While I spoke into the microphone I noticed the woman talking to the boy - ... Read Full Story >>

A Little Step With A Big Lesson

The shop was set a little back from it's neighbours. The little old lady who was leaving it leaned on a walking stick and used her other hand to support herself as she shuffled slowly along the plate-glass window and then along the wall of the neighbouring shop. All of this to cross a step most of us would have covered in two strides.   My fifteen year old daughter Amy and I had been swimming in a nearby leisure centre and just happened to be passing. I stepped forward offering a few friendly words and a supporting hand.   She had a motability scooter (a little electric wheelchair) on the pavement - but first she had to get down that step!   I supported her as she came to the edge. She swung one foot forward, then hesitated. She shifted her weight, leaning on my arm and said, "I better put my bad leg down first."   Eventually, ... Read Full Story >>

"Do You Like Chocolate?"

While grocery shopping today, I saw that my very favorite chocolate was on sale. I bought three of them and decided to share one with someone.  As I walked to the register, I noticed that the cashier was smiling at everyone. He was asking them how they were doing and wishing them a nice night. When my turn came, he asked me how I was doing.  I replied, "Great!" and then asked, "Do you like chocolate?" "You bet," he said.  I smiled.  As I finished checking out and was about to leave, I grabbed one of the chocolates that I had in my bag, pulled out a Smile Card from my wallet, and gave it to the cashier.  He smiled, "Are you sure?" "Yes."  It was great to see the big smile on his face when I did that. :D

It Is In Giving That You Get

It was one of those unexpected moments of generosity that just takes your breath away - I called up my favorite sandwich shop, ordered two veggie hoagies, and arranged to pick them up in ten minutes. Parking places are hard to find around there so my wife dropped me off, saying she would pick me up again in a few minutes.  I walk in and mention my order. "Ah yes! Here you go. That'll be $14.87," the burly man behind the counter said.  I gave him the cash and he handed me my change. As I picked up the napkins he handed me a giant empty glass. "Here you go," he said. "That's for your drink."  I took it, not really sure why he had given it to me. "Um, I actually didn't order a drink," I said and tried to hand him the glass back.  "Oh, I know. Go ahead, help yourself to a ... Read Full Story >>