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An Opportunity To Teach My Son About Gifting

My sister came to visit me recently.  On our way to the airport, I picked up a lottery ticket to give to her as a fun surprise.  Imagine our surprise later when while sititng at dinner, she scratched the ticket and had won $50.  We were thrilled but my son thought she should have to give some it back.  It was funny because I had to explain that that is not how a gift works.  I think I finally got through but he talked about that winning ticket all week during her visit.

Finally the day came for her to leave us again.  She had spent a fun week volunteering time at my son's school and had seen some students in need.  Imagine my surprise when before she left, she insisted I take the ticket winnings and donate it to a new program at the school, called "Kindness in Christ".  Thankfully, we have never had to ask for help but we know families that have, and we gratefully do whatever we can to lend a hand.   This was an excellent way to show my son that it is not always the person that gets the winning tickets that wins, in this case, everybody does! 

Anonymous Kindness With My Coworkers At School

Yesterday, I anonymously gifted three coworkers at the school I work at. First, I left a note for our school assistant superintendent that said, "Thank you for holding down the fort."  She has taken on the additional role of principal until one can be hired. Next, our school secretary received a note that said, "Thank you for wearing your happy face, everyday."  She does an awesome job of constantly being patient and smiling at everyone. Third, our payroll person got a note that said, "You make a difference."  Needless to say, she makes sure we all get paid, but she is also a great mom that has brought two wonderful children into this world.  I know because I have taught them both. Along with the notes, the recipients got the famous Smile Cards and small bottles of various perfumes.  I have not seen or heard the effects of these small acts of kindness.  However, ... Read Full Story >>

Gratitude Creates Gratitude

I just read the story of the folks who baked cookies and cupcakes to hand out to people in their community who they wanted to thank for doing the jobs they do, and how moved they were by the responses they got from folks.

I had a similar experience when I typed a short email to the Siemens Corporation to thank them for making and selling the radiation machine that treated my cancer.  I got personal emails from an exec there telling me I made her day.  They ran my email in their company newsletter (seen by some 500,000 employees) and then flew me up to Siemens Healthcare US headquarters to let me say thank you in person to their employees!  They filmed my talk and then did an interview with me and will be sharing all that with more employees in the future who couldn't be there that day.

I knew that it would matter to someone there if I said, "thanks" but had no idea the impact that act would have on the company or on me.  Just a tremendous blessing all around.

An Hour That Made All The Difference In My Life

There are a few people who have passed through my life who I say I would never be able to repay. One of them who left the most impact was my art teacher Mr. Cataldo.

I went to a very rough middle school and that is a difficult age to be in an unsafe environment. I was bullied and mistreated on a regular basis. Perhaps the other students could see the victim in me, but all of that changed the day that I came into art class.

Mr. Cataldo let every student of his know that this was a safe zone and no bullying or bad behavior could happen on his watch. He fostered a good environment for learning and growing. It was only an hour a day, but it saved my life at the time. So thanks, Mr.C for giving me a little haven of peace in an otherwise dark and disturbing middle school experience. I think about you often!

Extra Care For A Teacher Going Through A Difficult Time

On Monday, my fiancee and I heard that our astronomy teacher's mother had died.  We were surprised that he was still teaching in school. My fiancee was telling me that as the teacher was teaching, he had felt such empathy for the man, because as he was lecturing, you can sense he was trying to be strong, in the midist of teaching. We came up with an idea. The teacher is such a passionate and warm hearted person, and we figured that, he could use a good dose of  love and cheer. That night after school, we meditated for our teacher as well as his beloved mother. We like to meditate using Metta and Tonglen, both very loving spiritual meditation practices ;) When we went back to school (yesterday), we gave him cheer up cards which we had take time to decorate with flowers, hearts and peace signs. As we had handed the cards to him, we both could see the ... Read Full Story >>

Fruit And Friendship Make My Day

There is a pregnant woman that works in the building adjacent to mine. I started work here a few months ago and every morning I would see her taking a nice walk. Then one day I greeted her and asked about her baby. She was very kind and smiled a lot.

On our first meeting she said she was having trouble picking a name so we brainstormed together and came up with some ideas.

Our chats became regular whenever she was on her walk and on the days that she did not show I would go by her office to see about her and the baby. I noticed that when ever she went on her walk she had a bottle of water; she told me that she got hungry a lot. So I started bringing some fruit to work with me and every time I saw her I gave her one.

We have now been friends for a few weeks and I still bring her a fruit every morning during her walk. The satisfaction it gives me to see her gratefully smile at me makes my day! Funny how a piece of fruit given in kindness can transform my whole day.

The baby is due in two months and she is as excited as can be. And I couldn’t be happier to have a new friend in my life. I look forward to meeting her little angle too.

Seeing The Smile On Their Face

I am so glad I found this site and I can't wait to use my smile cards.  I went to the mall on my lunch hour from work, and  wrapped a smile card with a five dollar bill and left it on a pole in the middle of the mall.  I had some time so I wanted to sit back and watch who would take it. I couldn't believe how many people walked by and didn't see it!  I prayed that just the right person would find it, that really needed some encouragement today.  My lunch was almost over so I was almost out of time.  I really wanted to see the person's face who found it.  Then all of a sudden two ladies walked by and one of them took the money rather quickly, and then I saw her and her friend read the smile card and then turn it over ... Read Full Story >>

Kindness Through the Generations

Many years ago when I was employed, I joined my mother in donating some money to build small houses for six poor families. After their houses were completed, with gratitude in their hearts, we were invited for their house warming ceremonies.  They had lovely homes to live in.  We felt very light and satisfied after seeing them with roofs over their heads.  Several years passed by, my parents had passed away and I lhad eft my work to lead a retired life. Some time later, I took a meditation retreat trip to Thailand. In these meditation centers, the foreign mediators are given accommodation in seperate areas, where either two women or two men share a single room with a common bath and toilet or a single room with an attached bath and toilet. The local meditators stay in large halls. The time of the year was such that the meditation center was completely full. Therefore, ... Read Full Story >>

Sweet Love

I normally get 4 of my grandaughters on Saturdays and they spend the night to go to church with me. The plan was for them to finish their Valentine's Day cards up for the special ones in church. Of course, everyone is special, but they can only make so many. We were to make and bake some heart shaped cookies and spread the love but due to circumstances the girls arrived late. I had already decided to go ahead and bake the cookies. They came into a home filed with the smell of homemade cookies which was a plus. Next morning I gave each girl a wrapped plate of cookies to take into their Sunday School room and share with others. There were some left-overs because there were so many. After church service I allowed them to share the remaining cookies with whomever would like one. The girls smiled as they asked the church family if they would like one. They recieved so many compliments and smiles and hugs! It was so awesome to watch them. Alot of love was passed around in that small gesture....Happy Valentine's Day everybody !!! 

Personal Growth On The Freeway

This morning when I got in my car I said a prayer. I prayed that God would help me become a better person and I prayed He would allow me to experience personal growth.  As I pulled out and headed to work I said I was going to hold myself accountable for all the things that I know prevent me from being that better person.   As soon as I got on the freeway the madness started. People were driving crazily, not courteous at all. So I was getting mad and impatient. And then a car came out of nowhere and the driver cut in front of me so recklessly that I had to slam my foot on the brakes to avoid from crashing into him.   In that moment a string of curse words entered my mind and my arm raised in anticipation of blaring my horn! My other hand prepared to flash a ... Read Full Story >>

Shared Scrubs

I am a nurse who is required to wear a uniform we call "scrubs" at work. 

Cooking and Feeding With Love

I love cooking and food, so it's very natural for me to share the foods I make with my friends, family and co-workers.  It's such a profound way to show someone you care about them.  When I cook, I create meals of loving kindness, which I hope will nourish the recipients in body, mind and spirit. 

It is very important to me to use mainly organic and non-GMO ingredients so that when I deliver food to my friends and see them smile and enjoy my cooking, I am reminded that I have shared my love with them. It's nourishing on multiple levels and I am grateful they relish seeing me with my cooking creations.

He Made My Day - The Old-Fashioned Way

While stopping for gas one morning I was checking and filling my transmission fluid when a frail elderly man came up to me and took over. 

The Gift on the Sidewalk

Today, I was babysitting my two-year-old friend, Liam. He was feeling sad and wanted to stay inside with his mom and dad. I tried everything to get him interested in playing outside with me. Nothing worked. Finally, as a last resort, I took a shiny new penny out of my pocket. I tossed the penny down the sidewalk and then chased after it. It must have looked fun, because he joined right in! On one of my tosses, the shiny penny rolled down the sidewalk and appeared to stop near a Christmas tree that was laying next to the gutter, waiting to be picked up by the recycle truck. As I squatted near the tree to look for the penny, I spotted a small, lonely Christmas ornament attached to one of the branches. Scooping it up, I was struck by how delicate it was. Handmade, and crafted from felt, it was in the ... Read Full Story >>

A Simple but Meaningful Act of Gratitude

Every month, I write letters to two Marines serving in Afghanistan who I don't know.  I thank them for their service to our nation. While I don't know them, I hope that they know how much I appreciate them.

My First Kindness Assignment

 
The first real "kindness assignment" I was ever given came when I was in 2nd grade. 
 
A small boy with red hair, freckles and pleading eyes asked me, "Would you please be my friend, because I don't have any?" 
 
This really scared me. This boy was disliked and shunned by the other students for some reason. I had a brief, scared, thought that I would also become an outcast and be disliked if I befriended him. I remember my heart pounding a second or two.
 
Then I remembered what this world was all about and I said, "Yes. I will be your friend." 
 
When you have to make a quick decision always choose love over fear. Kindness can be as easy as speaking one word!
 

Runaway Coffee Barrels and the 'Angel of Mercy'

Coming home from a coffee shop today, we had our old truck loaded down with three 50-gal. barrels of mostly coffee grounds that we use to make compost.  My husband had laid them down in the truck, and as we came up the ramp to a major intersection the tailgate hinge broke and all the barrels rolled out into the street behind us. Thank goodness there were no cars immediately behind us, which was a bit of a miracle since it was lunch hour. One barrel rolled right into a lane, and the two others were partially in a lane.  We slammed on the brakes, jumped out, and I retrieved the closest one while my husband started running back toward the ramp to get the other two. I knew that one of the ones he was going to get was extremely heavy; we had had a horrible time getting it into ... Read Full Story >>

The Blanket In The Dug-Out

In my new position as manager of parks and recreation in a small California mountain town I have the great privilege of being able to visit parks and playgrounds as part of my job responsibilities.  A month or so ago, on a cold autumn morning, I walked through a ball park near my office. In the dug-out I noticed some trash and an old blanket which I picked up and carried toward the trash bin. As I lifted the blanket to dispose of it I caught a whiff ... and it occurred to me that it was being used, probably by a homeless person. I stopped, thought about it, and reluctantly returned the blanket to the dug-out.   Over the next couple of weeks I would pop my head into the dug-out. The blanket was always there, always in a different place. As our maintenance men were in the park often I assumed ... Read Full Story >>

A Tennis Camp Deed Returned Months Later

Four years ago, I had the opportunity to go to a camp in the US. This camp was a high performance tennis camp. I trained a lot and I won three tournaments; it was an amazing summer. I met a lot of great people and I went to amusement parks which I loved. During the third week, one of my friends ran out of money and he couldn't contact his parents. As a result, he couldn't eat so I decided to give him some of my money. He never paid me back but I didn't care; I did it because he needed it. Two months ago, I went to a club in another city and I lost my wallet. I felt terrible and frustrated because it had all my money and my driving license and it was really important for me. After losing my wallet, I remember one guy touching my shoulder ... Read Full Story >>

Giving treats away at McDonalds

I was at McDonalds the other day and was trying to decide what snack to get to tide me till I rode the 2 bus home.

There was a young lady looking at the menu but just got a small soda. I decided to help and got 2 breakfast burritos for one dollar each and 2 apple pies which are 2 for a dollar. I shared a burrito and pie with her and you would have thought it was the best meal of all time.

She was happy and I was too. I was able to share a meal with someone . I told her I never like to eat alone and was happy for the company. Who knows maybe I will see her there again some day.

Found out she had lost her job and didn't have much money for food . I told her to go to my church and they would help her with some groceries to help out. So I know she will have something else to eat later on that day too. Its a blessing to help someone in need.