20 years ago, sifting through a small town library in northwest Iowa, I stumbled upon a book of quotes. At the time I was editor of the weekly newspaper and was always looking for inspiration to pass along to the community. Little did I know that this small book of quotes was going to impact me two full decades later.
In one of the sections of the quote book was a particular area that I found myself reading repeatedly. It was the section on kindness. At that time, I was going through some huge personal issues and I was struggling with how to remain open to possibility, keep my motivation high, and how to be a positive influence for my 6 old daughter.
Three quotes from that book have stayed with me.
“A kind gesture can reach a wound that only compassion can heal.” Steve Maraboli
“The smallest act of kindness is worth more than the greatest intention.” Kahlil Gibran
“Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a battle you know nothing about.”
Wendy Mass
One particularly cold January day, I decided to be daring. It was -5 degrees and sunny. I had taken off from work early so I could be home when my daughter came home from school. Somewhere on the drive home, I decided I was going to pick her up from school early and we’d spend the afternoon together.
I fibbed to her teacher that she had a doctor’s appointment and we ran to the warm car from the school, racing to see who would get to their car door first. I told her if she won she could decide what we were going to do with our free afternoon. She chose ice cream, because who wouldn’t want ice cream when it’s -5 degrees outside?
We laughed all the way to the neighboring town 13 miles away that had the only ice cream shop in our rural area and said it was going to be a day we’d laugh about forever. Little did we know, it truly was. While sitting together, laughing, and enjoying our sundaes, I asked her if she’d like to go on an adventure with me for the day. I didn’t even know what lay ahead of us that bone chilling day. I just knew I needed to smile and create a day of fun for us.
Across the parking lot, in front of the grocery store, I saw an elderly woman had fallen on the ice and had groceries scattered across the snow packed parking lot. My daughter and I walked over and helped her gather her things and get her safely to her car. We were smiling and laughing, telling the woman about our ice cream adventure and the woman’s facial expression changed dramatically from being embarrassed to being light and joyful, laughing with us at our ridiculous outing.
My daughter turned to me after the woman had left and said, “Mommy that was fun. Can we do that, again?”
We spent the day holding doors open for people, smiling at everyone we crossed paths with, helping load groceries, singing silly songs, complimenting everyone who smiled back at us, and spreading laughter and kindness for 3 hours.
That day turned into a contest between the two of us. Who could make the most people smile, laugh, or hug you each day? This tradition stuck and has been passed on to friends, other family members, my other kids, and now my grandson.
Creating a life of kindness doesn’t require money or nice clothes. Kindness doesn’t even require that you leave your home. You can be kind online, creating an atmosphere of warmth and genuine kindness by greeting people with a smile and an ear.
Kindness has a tendency to grow and catch on because it feels good to be kind in a world where we are all struggling with something. Being the cause of a stranger’s smile for the day is addicting. Warning: showing acts of kindness may feel like an addiction.
Here are some great ideas to help you create more kindness in your life:
Leave money on a vending machine for someone
Bake cookies for the elderly
Serve at a homeless shelter
Do a 5k for a good cause
Help at a veterinarian office
Pick up litter on the beach
Let someone go in front of you in line
Give a stranger a compliment
Make dinner for a family in need
Insert coins into someone’s parking meter
Buy flowers to hand out on the street
Leave letters of encouragement on people’s cars
Buy a movie ticket for the person behind you
Pay for someone’s meal at a restaurant
Write letters to soldiers
Donate Christmas gifts to an orphanage
Participate in a fundraiser
Hold open the doors for people
Hold open the doors for people
Thank a teacher with a gift
Help a senior with their groceries
Shovel a neighbor’s driveway when it snows
Walk a neighbor’s dog
Babysit for free
Plant a tree
Do a favor without asking for anything in return
Take someone new in your neighborhood on a tour of the city
Buy an ice cream cone for a child
Learn to say hello in a different language to different people
Prepare a meal for your family
Pay for a stranger’s library fees
Send cards to someone in the phone book
Spend a day at a homeless shelter
Give drinks out to people on a hot day
Send a letter to a good friend instead of a text
Bring in donuts for your co-workers
Help a child or older person cross the street
Water a neighbor’s lawn/flowers
Snap a photo of a couple
Give someone a gift card that you don’t intend to use
Wash someone’s car
Read to kids at the library for story time
Plan a surprise birthday party for someone
Perform a concert at a retirement home
Help do chores at a farm/ranch
Leave your waiter a generous tip
Start mentoring a younger child
Spend time with your grandparents
Make a family member breakfast in bed
Hold the elevator for someone
Pay for someone’s dry cleaning
Pack someone a lunch for the day
Make hot chocolate for your family on a cold day
Make hot chocolate for your family on a cold day
Take the time to appreciate the sunrise and sunset
Write someone an encouraging poem
Send coloring books to sick kids in the hospital
Celebrate your own best friend appreciation day
Help tutor a struggling student
Pay for student’s lunches
Offer to give a friend a ride home
Take the time to listen to someone
Recycle things that you see on the road
Help sick animals find homes
Make someone a homemade blanket or scarf
Feed the birds in the park
Leave some change on a wishing fountain
Donate your hair after a haircut
Give your umbrella to a stranger
Volunteer to work some overtime at your job
Ride your bike or walk to work
Offer compliments to strangers and friends and family
Buy your waiter/waitress dessert
Wash a neighbor’s dog for free
Buy groceries for the person behind you
Reconnect with old friends
Hide money in random places for strangers to find
Infuse your life with kindness. It just might be the best thing you can do for yourself.
Dr. Wendy Rae. D.D.
Infuse your life with kindness. It just might be the best thing you can do for yourself.
Dr. Wendy Rae. D.D.
Founder of Our Soul Oasis Magazine
www.TheAlchemyofEnlightenment.com
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