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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!

Daffodils and sweets to brighten someone's day...

Recently, I was thinking about how the porters in our building here in London have been doing a great job servicing the residents. In particular, there is one porter who manages to brighten up my day every time I come and go from our building and puts a smile on everyone's faces who comes by. He's always cheerful and very helpful and seems to be full of life.

I thought it would be nice to thank him for his kindness. So, I decided to put together a small bundle of daffodils and a box of sweets, each with a smile card attached. The plan was to leave it at the front desk anonymously, along with a "Thank You" card.

When I got down there, he was at the desk, so the anonymous game was over. But, I decided maybe that's the way it was meant to be, and I handed him the sweets, the flowers, and the card and thanked him for everything he does on a daily basis. He was definitely taken by surprise and couldn't get over the fact that someone would do this for him. It felt so wonderful to brighten someone else's day, who never fails to brighten mine

Kindness on my Doorstep

I came home from work one day to find some business cards and a card holder in the street.  Not much, but I figured the person might want them so I called the number only to find out the person was a seasonal employee.  No worries, I thought I would just throw the cards out since they didn't seem to be of much value.   A few hours later I saw a police car driving down the street, which is unusual.  As I went out to see what was going on I saw an envelope on my front porch.  It was a package of food stamps or food checks for mothers with young children.  There were enough checks to last through October or November and interestingly the name matched the name from the business cards.  I called the office that issues the checks, but they were closed so I called one ... Read Full Story >>

Helping Someone in Need

A few weeks ago, I was driving with my family when we stopped at a gas station. I noticed a man walking around asking for money to get to a city about an hour away. My Mom began driving away when I asked her to stop the car. I got out and gave the man some money. He wished upon me God's blessings, and I told him to have a Happy New Year.

I got back in the car and was greeted with, "How much did you give him?" and "You didn't need to do that!" Although my family didn't seem to understand where my generosity came from, I knew that the man must have needed the money more than I did. Even if he didn't, I just have faith that God sees all good works and blesses us in return.

The Back-packer Who Stayed For 12 Months

As my husbandTrevor was coming home on the bus one day, he struck up a conversation with a back-packer who was looking for accomodation; Trevor immediately invited his new found friend to stay with us.  And it was such a delight to have him staty with us for 12 months.  This act of kindness was repaid to us in so many beautiful ways. Eamon if you read this, thanks for everything!

Hospitality is a great way to show kindness not only to friends but to strangers who become friends.

A Trunk Full of Goodies on Good Friday

My family and I have suffered some severe financial difficulties this year, and were struggling to put food on the table for awhile. We didn't share that information with anyone, not even family, so when we got our blessing, we were very happily surprised! I got a call on Good Friday asking if I could stop by the place where my sister works; she had a gift for me. Since we are a close and generous family, I didn't think anything of it. When I arrived at her work and she opened her trunk, I could not believe my eyes: the "Easter Bunny" had left a huge basket for my family, filled with food and goodies! In the basket was enough food to make a full Easter dinner, right down to pie for dessert, and some chocolates for the kids, eggs and coloring, even three precious little stuffed bunnies. Somehow, a ... Read Full Story >>

Splat!

One day I was walking out of Mcdonalds when a man  deliberately walked into a girl. The milkshake she was holding out of her hands fell on the floor with a SPLAT!                                                                                                                           I quickly went inside and bought a milkshake and went back outside and  gave it to the girl. She smiled and slurped happily while her mum was profusely thanked me!!                                                                                     I felt so warm and fuzzy inside. And yet I walked away as though nothing had just happened. :-) lol Angel4eva ... Read Full Story >>

The Shawl of Courage

Sometimes kindness takes courage. I had bought this beautiful shawl some time back. I tried wearing it one day, but it felt like I was constantly messing with it throughout the day. Not for me. So the idea lingered in the back of my mind that I could give it to someone I run into when I get my morning coffee. I heard myself say, "Naw. I'll put it in the Goodwill box with the rest of the stuff. That's an act of kindness." But each morning I'd pass by women who might like it. "They'll think you're crazy just asking them if they want it out of the blue. Or they'll reject it. Put it in the pile." The thought of giving it away personally nagged at me a couple weeks. Finally, I took one little step. "I'll just put the shawl in my truck in case I see someone." And then ... Read Full Story >>

A Sweet Afternoon

Last week, I had stopped to get the mail before going to pick up my son from school.  Included in my mail was a coupon for a free chocolate bar. After picking up my son, I saw a student sitting all alone on the side walk waiting to be picked up.  I thought it would be a good idea to offer her the free coupon.  She flashed a big smile when I handed it to her and said thanks.

When my son and I returned home, what did we see in the refrigerator?!?  The same exact candy bar.  I guess my husband had gone to the store the night before!!! : ) 

What goes around comes around.  It was a sweet afternoon indeed! : )

A Fabric of Comfort

I have a non-profit called "Kidz KLoakz to Komfort Kidz." We use new, fun patterned fleece fabric to make, pillows, blankets, poncho's and hats and scarves, for kids in need of comfort, no matter their circumstances. The items we make go to hospitals, shelters, life-line helicopters and social service residential programs. We have simplified the pillow making to use all our scrap materail. NO sewing is required. We just take two identical size pieces of fleece fabric and fringe all the edges - the fringe shoud be two to two-and-a-half inches long. We then tie the top and bottom together on three sides, and stuff and tie the remaining open side.
In the three years since we were founded, we have given away over 7,000 fleece gifts. All funds are donated and all work is done by a group of 20 -40 volunteers of all ages. It's a beautiful example of lots of people doing a litte bit. My foundation provides the fleece. If anyone is interested feel free to let me know. Also, if anyone knows a place that could use them let me know - we ship all over!

A SPECIAL MEMORY

I was on my way from work one Mother's Day, and I noticed a man pulled by the side of the road and he was trying to load these huge logs into the back of his pick-up truck. As he attempted to load a log, I noticed every vein and muscle in his body straining to complete the task, but to no avail. I stopped my car and offered a hand. The gentleman looked at me as though I might not have enough strength to assist, but since I was the only one offering help he accepted. Together we lifted the log into the back of his truck and then two more. Admittedly, I was grunting from the weight of the logs. As we were loading the logs, I wondered if he was a craftsman who might be making tables from the huge logs (recently cut down by the city), but he ... Read Full Story >>

Appreciating a Neighbor's Garden

I have discovered the joy of speaking to strangers and now that I have crossed the age of 50 there is less danger of being misunderstood. The best thing about it is seeing the surprise and happiness of others when they are addressed or are included in the sharing a thought. Invariably, one kind gesture is returned with more kindness.

During my morning walk one day, I noticed a bush in front of a house that had half-opened buds of my favorite flowers that reminded me of my childhood. I went close to the bush for a better look and noticed the house lady looking at me curiously. I smiled and told her that I loved the flowers for their fragrance. She reciprocated. “I plucked them all for my morning prayers. You can have some,” she offered. I was touched by her generosity and blessed her in my heart for making  my day. 

Gratitude: The Key To Good Health

Gratitude is becoming quickly a central concept in the area of Positive Psychology. While there are various ways to express gratitude, what seems most important is that you find a way to express it that works for you. Frequently, a gratitude journal is used. You may have a specific notebook that is devoted just to writing what you're grateful for. The gratitudes need to stay fresh and you need to be emotionally invested when you write them if gratitude is to develop and deepen. For this reason, often writing daily is not the best route. Nor is reporting over and over the same items for which you are grateful, even though certainly you are still grateful for them. Expressing gratitude requires an "alive" and vibrant experience. You need to allow yourself to feel the gratitude in your body. Other ways to express gratitude include writing a letter of gratitude to individuals ... Read Full Story >>

Smiling with a Purpose in the Workplace

   Ever since I found this website and joined your wonderful group of 'SMILERS', I have realized the true power of a Smile.  Earlier, I used to smile a lot, (thankfully smiling has always come very easily to me), but after I joined this website, it has added a new meaning, and now when I smile, there is a purpose – to spread happiness - to keep on smiling until I receive a smile back. It so happens that I work in an ‘analyst department’ where the members are always ploughing away at their work quite seriously, clicking the mouse, typing in the numbers, searching the net... you know how it is.  Prior, to my joining the team there was always a loud silence, broken only by hushed whispers, mouse clicks or keyboard sounds.  But today, I must confess after more than six months of “smiling with a purpose”, I can see ... Read Full Story >>

A Birthday Lunch With An Extra Smile

My son and I were out of town for the weekend.  Whilst we were out and about, we found a little cafe and decided to have lunch there.  After we had sat down at our table, I noticed an elderly couple having lunch at a table across the room.  I must have looked over at them a few times because my son asked me if I knew them.  I replied that I didn’t, but that they reminded me of my own grandparents.  When the waitress came over, I asked her if she knew them.  She said she did.  She said it was the elderly man’s birthday today.  I wanted to do something for them so I told the waitress that I wanted to pay for their lunch and gave her some money.  Sometime later, the elderly couple came over to thank us.  They were so excited that someone had bought ... Read Full Story >>

Kindness Even When It's The Challenging Kind

I always try to be kind where I can and it usually comes reasonably easily to me to be kind to strangers or semi-strangers. I’ve discovered that it seems to be harder for me to be kind to the people who are closely related to me. I like spending time with my grandparents, who live only 5 minutes away from me, but I sometimes find it stressful and challenging. At their age (they are over 75 years old) they seem to have accumulated a lot of resentment and negativity although they were not like this before. My grandma seems to say negative things about others at any opportunity and my granddad gets immensely stressed and hyper and highly strung about the simplest of things. Last week I visited them a couple of times, and ended up feeling really stressed myself at the end of each visit although there were some good moments. ... Read Full Story >>

A Bus Ride To Happiness

I have had a number of revelations about myself this year. One of which is that whenever I'm feeling sad or down, a foolproof way to cheer myself back up is to help someone else.

One day I was having a horrible time and nothing was going right. (I bet everyone knows how that feels.) So I just hopped on a random bus, wanting to just get away. Right when I got on I saw this sad dejected looking lady. I decided to sit beside her and try to start up a conversation.

When I talked to her she seemed very suprised but she chatted with me anyway. We talked about love and kindness and how there wasn't enough of either in the world. She told me about her deep struggles.

As she was walking off the bus she said that I was her angel and that God brought me to her. In that one conversation, in that one statement, I felt complete contentment and peace with life.

People can be in search of happiness all their lives and never find it. But I truly believe that loving and helping others is the perfect way to find it.

Helping Out A Mother

The other day I was really glad to be able to help a friend. She had gone back to full time work after years of staying at home to take care of her children. She has been finding it quite hectic, especially because her husband works away a lot and isn't able to help as much as he would like. She had an after-work meeting to attend in the evening and I suggested her children come over and have dinner at our house. I told her not to worry about rushing back because they would be just fine.  We had a lovely time together and my son enjoyed seeing the girls here too. Life being how it is, my friend was a lot later coming back than she thought she'd be. So, when she rushed up to my front door I stopped her, hugged her, and told her to breathe deeply. Her children were lying on the couch reading, ... Read Full Story >>

Uncovering the real Self

 In my high school yearbook my teacher wrote a quote from "Hamlet":  "To thine own self be true."  It took me years to understand what that meant.

Through actions and mis-actions I began to learn to listen to my heart and to follow it in my decision-making and activities.  In the 1960s and 1970s I was an activist against many things:  racism, the Vietnam War, sexism, nuclear power...  This work was endless and exhausting.  

I was being true to myself at great personal cost.  I reached a point when I could do no more (age, health, economics). When I let go of being against so much, I found all that I am FOR.

 My energy has increased, I am happier.  I am turning every "against" belief into something I am for and focusing on change for the better.  I feel more true to myself than ever before.  And I have immense gratitude for that.

Cuddly Bears And Beenies

Today, when I was out in town, I went into the pound shop. Everything they sell costs £1.