Blog It Forward: Spreading Acts of Kindness
I am constantly amazed by the acts of kindness people bestow upon the world.
We often notice the darker side of humanity, as stories of discrimination, assault, murder and other atrocities flood our news channels. The media rarely covers those happier moments, the beauty beyond the madness, and so we tend to overlook all of the wonderful things that people do to help one another.
We’re a little jaded that way.
Like many of you, I often lose sight of the goodness in others. But on one especially stressful day at work, as I waited in line for lunch, I was reminded of that goodness in a small but powerful way. I was picking up food in the cafeteria of my old university, when the customer at the register had his credit card declined multiple times. As he fumbled around in his wallet for any spare change he could find, the cashier asked him to step aside while she took care of the next student in line. When that customer went up to pay, he said to the cashier, “Please add his meal to my tab.” The first student (a total stranger) thanked him profusely and offered to pay him back, but the second student replied, “Don’t worry about it. I hope you’ll do the same for someone else one day.”
His words resonated with me and helped renew my faith in others. Sure, his actions only cost him about $10, but their impact was much greater than that. By paying for this student’s meal, he made a stranger’s day even a little bit better.
Acts of kindness have always been important to me, which was why I was extremely excited when Wayfair.com invited me to participate in their Blog It Forward Challenge. I have been asked to share one of my latest experiences of giving back during the month of December, and in return, Wayfair will donate $50 to Habitat For Humanity. How cool is that? 🙂
Earlier this month, I read about Safyre, a little girl who lost her family in an arson attack and was left severely scarred. I cried when reading her story — losing your family at any age would be incredibly painful, but I can’t imagine how that would feel to an 8-year-old girl. This year for Christmas, all Safyre wanted were some Christmas cards to fill up her tree.
Of course, I had to send Safyre a card. Her story went viral, and she has now received millions of cards, gifts, a trip to Disney and even gifts from Katy Perry. My card is just one of those several million, but I still believe that each and every one of those cards made a difference in that girl’s life. It brings me so much joy to see how many people around the world came together — often with seemingly small acts — to do something so big for this girl.
As the final part of Blog It Forward, I have been tasked with tagging two blogger friends to share an act of giving back on their blog before the New Year. Nicole and Jen, are you up for the challenge? 🙂
I encourage everyone to be a little kinder in the new year. Volunteer your time. Pay for the person behind you in line. Talk to someone you wouldn’t normally talk to. Donate to a cause you believe in. Look for new ways to make the world a better place, and always look for the good in others, even when it’s hard to see.
