February 17^th is Random Acts of Kindness Day

We can all agree that Receiving a random act of kindness feels good. This Act makes you feel valued, loved, and appreciated. Kindness has a kind of power that warms the heart and makes us feel alive. It gives us a sense of perspective and purpose that are completely unmatched by anything else. Acts of kindness can spread like wildfire. People know this and yet, in today’s society, we forget to be kind. We get so caught up in our own lives; that we don’t see others in a kind way. Does this make us Bad people? Not necessarily, but it does make us closed off to our fellow man. The truth of the matter is, there are people around us, that may need an Act of Kindness to keep them going. You could Save a Life with one simple Act of Kindness. Now is the Time to Act!

What is a Random Act of Kindness?

A random act of kindness is a small display of thoughtfulness, empathy, or love aimed toward another person. A random act of kindness is an unexpected act of charity or helpfulness and is often done for a stranger. It is a non-premeditated, inconsistent action designed to offer kindness towards the outside world. Someone who performs a random act of kindness expects nothing in return. Often, the person who performs the random act of kindness does not even see the reaction of the person who receives the kindness.

The term random act of kindness was coined in 1982 by Anne Herbert, who wrote a book by the same name in 1993. The full, original phrase is random acts of kindness and senseless acts of beauty. Her expression was an attempt to counteract the phrase random acts of violence and senseless acts of cruelty. https://www.amazon.com/Random-Kindness-Senseless-Acts-Beauty/dp/161332023X

“Kindness is the language which the Deaf can hear and the Blind can see.” — Mark Twain

“How far you go in life depends on your being tender with the young, compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving, and tolerant of the weak and strong. Because someday in your life you will have been all of these.”—George Washington Carver

Ideas for Random Acts of Kindness

1. Leave money on a vending machine for someone

2. Bake cookies for the elderly

3. Serve at a homeless shelter

4. Do a 5k for a good cause

5. Help at a veterinarian office

6. Pick up litter on the beach

7. Let someone go in front of you in line

8. Give a stranger a compliment

9. Make dinner for a family in need

10. Insert coins into someone’s parking meter

11. Buy flowers to hand out on the street

12. Leave letters of encouragement on people’s cars

13. Buy a movie ticket for the person behind you

14. Pay for someone’s meal at a restaurant

15. Write letters to soldiers

16. Donate Christmas gifts to an orphanage

17. Participate in a fundraiser

18. Use your allowance to donate to a charity

19. Hold open the doors for people

20. Thank a teacher with a gift

21. Donate your old clothes to the Salvation Army

22. Help a senior with their groceries

23. Shovel a neighbor’s driveway when it snows

24. Walk a neighbor’s dog

25. Babysit for free

26. Plant a tree

27. Do a favor without asking for anything in return

28. Take someone new in your neighborhood on a tour of the city

29. Show the new kids around your school

30. Buy an ice cream cone for a child

31. Learn to say hello in a different language to different people

32. Prepare a meal for your family

33. Pay for a stranger’s library fees

34. Send Valentine’s Day cards to everyone in your class

35. Spend a day at a homeless shelter

36. Give drinks out to people on a hot day

37. Send a letter to a good friend instead of a text

38. Bring in donuts for your co-workers

39. Help a child or older person cross the street

40. Water a neighbor’s lawn/flowers

41. Snap a photo of a couple

42. Give someone a gift card that you don’t intend to use

43. Wash someone’s car

44. Read to kids at the library for storytime

45. Plan a surprise birthday party for someone

46. Perform a concert at a retirement home

47. Help do chores at a farm/harvest ranch

48. Save your pop tabs for a children’s hospital

49. Leave your waiter a generous tip

50. Start mentoring a younger child

51. Spend time with your grandparents

52. Make a family member breakfast in bed

53. Hold the elevator for someone

54. Pay for someone’s dry cleaning

55. Pack someone a lunch for the day

56. Write a kind or encouraging message on a napkin

57. Do a sibling’s chores without them asking

58. Offer to take a shopper’s cart to the line outside

59. Help someone who has a flat tire

60. Let someone else pick what to watch on TV

61. Send care packages to soldiers overseas

62. Rake the leaves for your neighbors

63. Mow the lawn for your neighbors

64. Take the day not to complain

65. Write a list of things that you adore about a friend]

66. Pay for someone’s morning coffee

67. Participate in Pack-A-Backpack for a child

68. Instead of posting negativity online, spread some encouragement

69. Share your favorite Bible verses or quote and post them to the company billboard

70. Give up your seat on the bus to another person

71. Pay for someone’s bus/cab fare

72. Offer someone your pen

73. Lend a friend a favorite book/movie

74. Recommend someone your favorite book/movie

75. Take your younger siblings out to play in the rain

76. Make hot chocolate for your family on a cold day

77. Take the time to appreciate the sunrise and sunset

78. Write someone an encouraging poem

79. Send Coloring Books to sick kids in the hospital

80. Celebrate your own best friend appreciation day

81. Help tutor a struggling student

82. Pay for another student’s lunch

83. Offer to give a friend a ride home

84. Take the time to listen to someone

85. Recycle things that you see on the road

86. Help sick animals find homes

87. Make someone a homemade blanket or scarf

88. Feed the birds in the park

89. Leave some change on a wishing fountain

90. Help out the janitors at school

91. Donate your hair after a haircut

92. Give your umbrella to a stranger

93. Volunteer to work some overtime at your job

94. Ride your bike or walk to work

95. Offer compliments to strangers and friends and family

96. Buy your waiter/waitress dessert

97. Wash a neighbor’s dog for free

98. Buy groceries for the person behind you

99. Reconnect with old friends

100. Hide money in random places for strangers to find

101. Be kind to yourself!

So, today’s challenge: commit two random acts of kindness.

I hope that I have Inspired you today. We could all do with a Little More Kindness and a lot less Conflict. Even a simple Smile could be the one thing that Makes a Big Difference in someones day. Time to make the Change that we want to see in the World.