Did you hear about the unknown man in Arkansas who recently paid for the $139 grocery bill for a woman in line behind him? It was one of those stories that warms your heart. Read inspirational stories in the news.
I thought about this story again today as I was updating the Inconvenience Yourself™ website. This random act of kindness fits right in with the concept. My thoughts led me to think about additional acts of kindness which aren’t so random. Too bad more of those don’t make the news. However, that shouldn’t stop us from being kind to those we encounter.
In fact, I think we should look at our acts of kindness as planned and unplanned. Planned acts of kindness are those that we think about ahead of time and carry out with intent. They usually involve people you know, but not always. Unplanned acts of kindness are those that we perform because the opportunity presents itself. They may or may not involve someone you know.
What are some planned acts of kindness? My neighbor comes to mind. She was diagnosed with cancer last year and left Thanksgiving weekend to go to a cancer treatment center. She expected to be back by Christmas. Here it is, February 22, and she isn’t home yet. Fortunately she has some wonderful friends. One stops by every day and feeds and plays with her cats. Another comes by every day to pick up mail and forward what is important. Other neighbors keep an eye out on her property. These are ongoing acts of kindness.
Another example of a planned act of kindness, which involves strangers, is smiling. A good friend of mine mentioned that with all the things we are going though in this country - the economy, people losing their jobs and homes, etc. - she now makes it a point to smile at everyone she encounters while grocery shopping. She finds that most people smile back. I just read the story of a woman whose day turned positive because someone smiled at her. Read her story.
What about unplanned acts of kindness? This can be helping someone at the grocery store get something from an upper shelf, holding a door, or picking up something from the floor and returning it to the person who dropped it. I find these opportunities are all over the place and often seem like they are trivial. However, they are usually a pleasant surprise to the person on the receiving end and result in a smile and “thank you”.
While random acts of kindness are great, planned acts of kindness that we don’t read about in the newspaper are extra special.
Share your own act of kindness story. We would like to hear about and share your experiences and ideas that fit into the Inconvenience Yourself™ concept.
Sunday, February 22, 2009
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