A few weeks back, Rob and I were in Edinburgh and as walked down Princes Street he randomly stopped and started speaking with a homeless man. Rob asked if he was okay, if he had somewhere safe to sleep, what was his dog's name etc. He then went on to give him about £10 for food. The man gracefully accepted and seemed genuinely appreciative of this random act of kindness. But Rob hadn't just given him the money...he'd taken the time to stop and chat with the man. As we walked away I burst in to tears. I was sad for the homeless man and his unfortunate, desperate situation but I was so moved that I'd witnessed someone showing kindness towards another and I hoped that for just even a moment, that man had felt that someone cared and that he mattered.
It seems fitting that on the same week as Valentine's Day, it was International Random Acts of Kindness Week (check it out!). Yes some will argue that you don't or at least shouldn't require a specially dedicated event to be kind (and yes they'd be right!) but I don't think it does us any harm to remind ourselves of the joy that being kind brings....not only to the recipient but to the giver! Kind is to be considerate, benevolent, helpful to others and in this cray cray world we're all battling through, being kind to others can unfortunately go way down on the TO-DO list. For all it may be on the list, sometimes it just doesn't get ticked off it. But if you could do one thing to make someone else smile, or make them feel appreciated, or help someone out just because you can...what would you do??
It seems there's a hashtag and a greetings card for everything these days and as much as I love celebrating life and the fabulous peeps I share mine with, I don't feel compelled to send a card every day of the week to a family member or friend to tell them I still love them. I tell them on a regular enough basis that I don't think a card is necessary to labour the point. It starts to feel a bit gimmicky and suspiciously like a clever selling point from the card companies who try to guilt us in to sending a different card every week. And we all know the price of stamps these days! Day light robbery!
Saying that, I do think it's so very important to randomly (whenever wherever the feeling takes you) to be kind and if kind means sending a card on 'Grandparents Day' then who am I to judge?! It's just that I think there's so many ways to show kindness to another human being (even to ones you don't know) that you should never be done finding ways to spread the love...surprising others with a little ray of sunshine to brighten their day.
We'd all like to think of ourselves as kind. In fact, if someone were to describe me and my character I'd hope to be thought of as kind above other amorous qualities. I get pleasure in making being happy or taking the load off someone or doing something that I know someone will at least appreciate even if it doesn't make them ecstatically overjoyed. From opening a door for a stranger, to telling a friend they look good, being kind doesn't have to cost the Earth (not even the price of a stamp) and it's often the recipient's obvious appreciation that inspires you to continue on your quest to be as kind as you can be. I also like to see others being kind too hence why I was so moved by Rob's #RAK that day.
So jumping on that hashtag bandwagon, I've recently been noting some of my #RAK contributions as well as those of others. Random being the key word. No pre-meditated niceness....it's all about the in-the-moment-let's-be-kind kinda kindness.
Here's a few examples of what you could do to spread the love....
* Hoovering out my car when the neighbour's car won't start. I offered to jump start it or take him to wherever he was going. We tried but sadly were unsuccessful as his battery was capoot. He seemed happy enough that I offered to help and made an effort to start his car.
* I felt the urge to compliment a cast member of a production I'm involved in. She's hard working, dedicated and super talented and I just wanted her to know I think she'll be spectacular on stage. She was well chuffed.
* My colleague Eilidh woke a man asleep next to her on the bus to alert him that his stop may be coming up.
* Rob visited a neighbour who has just had an op. He came back and immediately looked out a bottle of whiskey and the Soprano's box set and took it over to the man to enjoy as he recovers. Some guy!
* My friend Linzi sent Rob and I an email for a FREE trial of Hello Fresh meals(healthy ingredients sent to your door with recipe cards for you to make each meal). How lovely!
* A woman randomly stopped Mimi to tell her she loved her haircut and that she really suited it as she has such a lovely face. Mimi really appreciated the compliment.
* Something that I do 5 days a week.... I take my colleague Eilidh tea every morning. She gets the train to my home town and then I drive us to work.
She always appreciates a cuppa at 7.35am.
* I came home the other night and as I sat down on the sofa after a looooong day at work Rob gestured towards to cushion next me. I lifted it to find a packet of crisps and Tanya Burr's new book that I'd wanted to buy! He's a star!
* I always stop to give a neighbour a lift home when I see her. She's usually carrying a lot of shopping bags!
So there you have it....random acts of kindness that bring a little sunshine in to the lives of others. It really is the little things that count. No grand gestures required...just a smile, or a helping hand can work wonders and make the world a happier place.
And those nice folks who take the time to show another human being some kindness...
Well they probably get more out of it than the recipients.
Be kind folks. It ROCKS!
Over and out, Weesse x
* My colleague Eilidh woke a man asleep next to her on the bus to alert him that his stop may be coming up.
* Rob visited a neighbour who has just had an op. He came back and immediately looked out a bottle of whiskey and the Soprano's box set and took it over to the man to enjoy as he recovers. Some guy!
* My friend Linzi sent Rob and I an email for a FREE trial of Hello Fresh meals(healthy ingredients sent to your door with recipe cards for you to make each meal). How lovely!
* A woman randomly stopped Mimi to tell her she loved her haircut and that she really suited it as she has such a lovely face. Mimi really appreciated the compliment.
* Something that I do 5 days a week.... I take my colleague Eilidh tea every morning. She gets the train to my home town and then I drive us to work.
She always appreciates a cuppa at 7.35am.
* I came home the other night and as I sat down on the sofa after a looooong day at work Rob gestured towards to cushion next me. I lifted it to find a packet of crisps and Tanya Burr's new book that I'd wanted to buy! He's a star!
* I always stop to give a neighbour a lift home when I see her. She's usually carrying a lot of shopping bags!
So there you have it....random acts of kindness that bring a little sunshine in to the lives of others. It really is the little things that count. No grand gestures required...just a smile, or a helping hand can work wonders and make the world a happier place.
And those nice folks who take the time to show another human being some kindness...
Well they probably get more out of it than the recipients.
Be kind folks. It ROCKS!
Over and out, Weesse x
