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To Doxie, With Love And Gratitude

  I met the most amazing person a few years ago. She has a wonderfuloutlook on life and she believes in the city of Detroit, even though many others have given up on.     My friend started an organization called Burners Without Borders and she focuses her efforts on helping the homeless in Detroit and the surrounding areas.    Every winter my husband and I help her with the Back-Pack Project. We fill back-packs with canned food, socks, gloves, hats, water, granola bars, a blanket. etc., and we give them to homeless people that we see on the streets.     People warn me that I could get hurt doing this but I don't feel in danger. I feel that these people are grateful and surprised that anyone cares. I am not reckless about it, I use common sense, but feel safe doing it that way.   Doing this simple thing for people has changed my life. I ... Read Full Story >>

A Mighty Effort For Might Max

After hearing about “Mighty” Max Low who is a 12-year-old boy with Leukemia I couldn’t help but get right in behind helping him and his family.     Max has been fighting with Leukemia for half his life and his big wish is to receive a million get well cards. It is his dream!   The sixth-grader was diagnosed with leukemia in kindergarten. Instead of letting the ailment get him down, in 2004, he and a friend thought of a cool way to pass the time while bedridden - get people to write him get well cards.    They set a goal of 1 million cards and while the word initially spread like wildfire the campaign began to peter out at the 24,000 card mark.   His story touched my heart and I longed to help him. I thought to myself, I can't just sit here. Let's set this wildfire off again and make his dream come true!   Firstly ... Read Full Story >>

Standing in Line For Someone Else

This happened to me 20 years ago and I'll always remember the kindness of this stranger. 

I was pregnant with my second child and I was at the DMV office waiting in line to get the title to my car.  It was taking a very long time. I must have sat down three times because I felt so dizzy.  This pregnancy had been a hard one. I was in my eighth month and I was not feeling so great. I stood up and got back in line and started to feel faint again so I turned to go sit down and this young man stopped me and said that he would stand in line for me if I didn't mind. He told me that his wife had seen me sit down several times and that she was pregnant and understood  how I was feeling.

I was living in Los Angeles at the time and hadn't met many people that were caring or polite. I was so thankful for that kind man who helped me out that day by standing in line for me.  I'll never forget how much he helped me that day! 

 

Being Alive and Well Fed

This morning I asked myself a question: ‘What does being alive mean to me?’. The question eventually led me to this moment now. Well, isn’t it only to be in the now to be alive, anyways? Well, at this particular moment-right now - being alive means sharing the abundance of kindness in a story. Two years ago, I was hitchhiking and a friendly man in his mid-sixties pulled over. Curt was brimming over with stories spiced with his joy for living. My journey to the chiropractor didn’t take it’s usual 3 or so rides.  Curt altered his route to drop me off directly in front of the office 45 minutes later. During the ride, I learned that Curt was just dropping off a van-load of free food for people in my small town.  He did this weekly just because "It is so fun to bring people food which otherwise would have gone ... Read Full Story >>

When My Daughter Was Born

Exactly 10 years ago I gave birth to a little girl, now turning a big girl.

The day my daughter was born I was blessed with the company of my husband and 3 friends who kept me company from 16.30 in to 23.00 at night.  Due to the shortage of personel, I had to stay with my baby daughter in the corridor of the hospital just outside the bunch of the rooms where women give birth.

I can't forget the endless patience and efforts of my friends and family to keep me in good spirits for all those hours. To me,  this day is a celebration of my daughter's birthday and a celebration of the most beautiful friendship in times of need. They must have done a fantastic job because I don't remember being bored or annoyed while we waited all those hours!

This year I am going to write a thank you letter to each of them for being there for me.

Winter Food Drive

I stopped in at the supermarket to get a few things and there were two ladies collecting food for a winter food drive for a charity. I bought a few cans of food and two chocolate bars, which I handed to them and thanked them for spending time in their weekends collecting for those in need. They both smiled and thanked me and said it was just what they needed. Before KS I wouldn't have done that, and now I'm brave enough for personal greetings and eye contact :-)

Can You Go Overboard With Kindness?

This past weekend I had a bunch of charitable things I wanted to do. I took food to the animal shelter, I bought sweaters and a couple of sleeping bags to donate to the homeless, and I bought someone's breakfast at the drive-thru. On my way into the good-will shop I saw a couple of young teenagers huddled together; a boy and a girl, no more than 14 or 15. The girl had her head on the boy's shoulder and they were clinging to each other. No one paid them any attention. On my way out, I saw them still sitting there. I started to walk to my car but thought, 'No. What if these poor kids need something? What if they've run away and have nowhere to go? What if they're hungry?'     Imagining all sorts of awful scenarios I turned around and walked towards them, very proud of myself for my ... Read Full Story >>

Knit One, Save One

Using yarn that's been donated to our elementary school, our third-grade knitting club makes little knit caps for premature newborns. I just finished a striped one (see photo), and one of my students put the pompon on it. :) Today, I started another-- a little yellow one.

A simple knit cap is an essential tool to help keep newborn babies warm, especially if they are of a low birth-weight and don't have access to things like caps and incubators. It takes about two hours to knit this life-saving measure for a baby in need, and it fills our hearts with immeasurable love to think that we are positively impacting the world of another family, nearby or worlds away.

Here's a sweet six-minute video story about it, with our students' voices. :)

Spontaneous Dog Therapy

Two days ago, in the pouring rain, a young man was yelling into his cell phone as he was approaching the horse trail where I was walking with my two Great Pyrenees dogs and Yellow Labrador.  Kailash, my biggest dog, wanted to approach him. But, since the man was so engrossed in the angry conversation, I did not want to come up behind and startle him. We just stood silently sending unconditional love as he walked on.    After returning home with the Pyrenees and Lab, I headed back out with my two Golden Retrievers. Down on the trail we found the young man bent over, holding onto the horse railing.   I asked if he was okay. He said he was frustrated. We talked and I suggested he pet the dogs to help him feel better. I told him about oxytocin, the hormone released by stroking a dog, how it calmed the brain and ... Read Full Story >>

A Double Act of Kindness

I had the opportunity to help two people today.

A young lady had parked her car in a no parking zone near the Anna Nagar roundabout in Chennai, India.  She was upset and was anxiously asking people what to do because the wheel of her car had been locked with a special lock so that she could not drive it. 

She would have to pay a fine to get the lock removed but she seemed to be very scared of dealing with the police.  I accompanied her to a police van parked a little way away and dealt with the police officer on her behalf.  I paid the fine of Rs.150 on her behalf and she reimbursed me later.  She was so relieved to be able to drive her car off again and thanked me several times. 

Later during the day, I came across a young poor couple who were trying to deposit a check at the bank where I have an account.  They had been given a check for Rs. 6,000 by the government which is given to new mothers.  They appeared confused and were unable to fill out the forms.  I helped them with that I hope I eased some of their confusion. 
 

Taking the Extra Step to 'Pay-it-Forward'

I wanted to do a random act of kindness for my friend’s birthday, so on Friday I went to Walmart to carry out my gift to her because I think people who shop there do so to save money and could use a gift. My gift in honor of her birthday is a birthday cake!  I selected a cupcake birthday cake for which the recipient of the gift can pick any design they wish. My plan is for the next person who walks up to the bakery counter to purchase a cake to be told that someone has anonymously paid for their cake, and for them to then receive the receipt along with my handwritten message explaining the gift along with a Smile Card attached. It took some doing/convincing!  I had to speak to 2 members of the management and make 2 trips to the store.  I was turned down the first time ... Read Full Story >>

Kindness Cookies From A Conference

I'm attending a conference at a hotel this week. The hotel provides a continental breakfast as well as an afternoon snack selection.  When our session ended today I noticed there were still some cookies left. Knowing that the way home would take me through an area where there are homeless people I was inspired to pack up some of the extra cookies in napkins and take them with me to give away.     Granted, cookies are not the healthiest food but they are an indulgence I imagine few homeless people get to enjoy. And these cookies were really good!   I gave two to a homeless gentlemen, left two neatly wrapped on top of a container in another public place where I often see homeless people, and have two more with me to give away on the way back in tomorrow.   It's an idea you might consider if you happen to be staying at a ... Read Full Story >>

A Stuffed Animal Matters

"A stuffed animal might not matter much to the average person, but for a child, it could mean the world. When 10-year-old Leon Ashworth’s mom couldn't afford to buy him a stuffed panda he desperately wanted, he wrote a forlorn note on the toy’s box pleading with shoppers not to buy it until his mom could. What happened next was so heartwarming, it will melt you. The boy, who lives in Liverpool, England with his mom, Debbie Ashworth, first saw his beloved ‘Pandy’ at an Asda supermarket, the British equivalent of Wal-Mart. Though he was willing to wait patiently until his mom’s paycheck came in on June 15th to take the cuddly bear home, the store’s staff decided to do something incredibly thoughtful after they noticed Leon’s scribbled letter. In search of the young author, whom they didn’t know at the time, they posted the note on Facebook – and eventually attracted ... Read Full Story >>

Passport To Europe

Someone I work with was asked to go to Europe to sing with her church choir! 

Kind Words Calm Mother and Child

One day I was shopping with my child after work to pick up supplies needed for an employee celebration. I was exhausted and wanted to get in and out quickly.

My child was tired and cranky and wanted out of the shopping cart. She was grabbing for every item we passed. I was losing my patience and temper when an elderly woman came over to us. She took my child's hand, and said, "what a lovely child."

My little girl was quiet immediately. The woman looked at me. She had an angelic smile and then said, "They are so wonderful at this age." At once I felt peaceful and in control of the situation.

After she walked away, I found a snack that pleased us and we had a pleasant shopping trip. That one moment of someone reminding me what a treasure I had turned my whole attitude around and made my shopping trip so much easier.

A Kind Local Gardener

A few weeks ago the local gardener came to help me with the hedge as it is so difficult for me to do on my own. He's a lovely man and I always enjoy talking to him. We talked about the flowers we liked and I mentioned that I would like to get lupines some days because they look gorgeous at the garden centre. Today he was due to do the lawn, which only takes 45 mins so I didn't get to see him. When I got to my garden he'd left. I checked my phone to call and thank him and he'd left me a message saying that he'd left some lupine seeds for me in the post. How sweet and kind is that?!

Kindness Is The Medicine

One of my co-workers was recently stressed because his wife is struggling through a period of severe depression triggered by a rebounding of bodily pain from fibromyalgia.  She's also been on furlough from work for a number of years, and doesn't get much opportunity to maintain social ties and a sense of purpose which are often so essential and deeply nourishing.  After listening to him unload his burdens, I decided to do something small to support him and his wife. I don't know his wife very well at all, but wanted to express some warmth and kindness to her, since it so often feels like the universal balm to soothe every ailment. I found out that, like most people, she loves receiving handwritten mail.  So I purchased a card and wrote the following message to her: Dear Nxxxx, I want you to know that you have something very unique and beautiful to offer the ... Read Full Story >>

FEED SOMEONE IN NEED

My heart is overflowing with so much gratitude and love for my amazing life which is simply filled with lots of blessings, sunshine & flowers.

I still remember that one special day when I had just finished dropping off stuffed animals at the emergency room at the nearby hospital - so nurses can give away those cuddly teddy bears to hurting & sick children.I was on my way home and thought of a nice yummy organic salad for dinner.As I was about to walk into the store, I saw a young man sitting on the bench right in front of the store.

He looked fragile and hungry.I stopped right in front of him with a big smile and "hi my dear, how are you doing?" he smiled back and said that he was trying to sell his flutes so he could buy himself some dinner.I smiled and said "please join me - I'd love to buy you your dinner."

He smiled and opened his arms and gave me a big warm hug and then he said the most beautiful prayer for me before we entered the store... and this became another beautiful moment of heaven on earth... be kind to strangers because you never know you might entertain some angels... ;-)

Top Ten Kindness Stories of 2012, Story #10 - 8 Things To Do Every Day That Will Make You Happier

1) Thank someone First thing in the morning, send an email thanking or praising someone. Research shows this can brighten your day.   2) Spend money — on someone else Harvard professor Michael Norton, author of Happy Money: The Science of Smarter Spending, explains how spending money on other people can generate more happiness than spending on yourself: 3) Give 5 hugs People assigned to give or receive hugs 5 times a day ended up happier than the control group. From Sonja Lyubomirsky’s very interesting book, The How of Happiness: In a one-of-a-kind study, students at Pennsylvania State University were assigned to two groups. The first group was instructed to give or receive a minimum of five hugs per day over the course of four weeks and to record the details. The hugs had to be front-to-front (nonsexual) hugs, using both arms of both participants; however, the length and strength of hug, as well as the placement of hands, were left ... Read Full Story >>

Making Sure to Thank the Referees

I spent my Saturday at the basketball court watching all three of our kids play their games.  My older two had playoffs as they worked to be in the championship game.  During the third game of the day I commented to my husband that these playoff games were getting a little overly rough and competitive and it was making me nervous. As my son's game continued, the fans around us starting making light-hearted comments about the refs' calls - or lack of.  These were the same ref's my son's team has had all season and I think they are a GREAT pair - which I said often during the game.  The refs had a sense of humor and grinned and nodded as the comments continued to come. It was an intense and physical game and I was cheering loudly!  It was a tight game to the end, but my son's team did end ... Read Full Story >>