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Celebrate Pay It Forward Day, April 26th

Pay It Forward Day is coming up on Thursday April 26th and we invite you to celebrate with us by doing an act of kindness!   Below are some kindness ideas, based on some of our favorite real-life HelpOthers' pay-it-forward stories.  And we invite you to share how you celebrated by leaving a comment on this story! 1.  The tried and tested - pay for the coffee for the person in the line behind you.   Andrew was a bit anxious when he tried to do this for the first time and wasn’t sure it would work - a week later, the coffee shop tags him with a free cup of coffee for being cheerful and friendly!  [more]   2.  Anonymously pay for someone’s meal at a restaurant.   A grandmother is sharing pancakes with her family when she decides to pay for the meal of a man eating alone, so she has the waitress deliver him ... Read Full Story >>

Kindness of a little girl

Tonight at work a little girl at dinner started chatting to me excitingly. She showed me her new shoes, dress, and her most favourite ... two big shiny sparkling dress rings.

I told her much I loved them and how beautiful she looked. Later during my shift she called me over to her table and begun pulling off one of her rings. Once she had it off she then placed it into my hand and said, "Here, this is for you. It's my favorite but I want you to have it. I know you will take very good care of it for me and will love it as much as me".

I just about cried. Is that not one of the sweetest things! Mostly so because it was her favorite, and only an hour earlier she was telling me how much she loved it and had only just received it.

Children. They really do live from their hearts and it's something to be admired and cherished. And the world is a better place because of them. Blessed we all are for the daily reminders of love that our children give us ♡

Scouts Honor on a Full Flight

My 9-year-old daughter and I were flying from our home in Charlotte, North Carolina, to spend a week with my husband in Miami, Florida. Mike had been in Florida for five months working for an internet start-up company. We were excited about the trip because we had seen him only five times in five months, and Kallie missed her Dad terribly. As usual on the Charlotte-to-Miami flight, the plane was totally full. I had noticed a troop of Boy Scouts at the gate and commented to my daughter that if anything happened, we would be OK with all those Scouts on our flight! Little did I know.... Because we did not get our boarding passes until we arrived at the gate, Kallie and I could not get seats together and were separated by the aisle. That wasn't such a big deal, except that Kallie was nervous about the trip and had counted ... Read Full Story >>

Shine Brighter

Dealing with the gal at the front desk at the doctor's office is sometimes less than pleasant. She can be quite off-putting and not at all welcoming. It can make a stressful time even more stressful. 

So, today, when we walked in the office, we were determined not to allow our light to be dimmed by her energy. We smiled at her and complimented her about the flowers on her desk. She smiled and chatted back.

We just need to shine brighter instead of being "reactive". Perhaps she's doing the best she can. We needed to be less reactive to her and more compassionate. We give away our power when we allow ourselves to be reactive.

Sunshine Smiles in the Rain

Today it is 39 degrees and supposed to be raining. It would have been the perfect day for me to act upon my Kindness Idea.   I was the lucky winner of the December Kindness Idea's Contest on Helpothers.org - where they give you $100 to carry out your kindness idea.   My idea was to purchase umbrellas for shelter on a rainy day and small towels to wife your face and hopefully bring a little smile into your day and hand them out to folks who find themselves caught out in the weather unprepared.    Once I received the check for $100 I ran right out and purchased umbrellas and towels. I laundered the towels and wrapped them around the umbrellas and banded them with a smile card.  I placed them them in plastic bags to protect them from moisture, dirt and grime! Then I waited on the rain!!!  Lately we’ve had plenty snow…but no rain. Yesterday the rains came! Where were the ... Read Full Story >>

Trees DO grow in Brooklyn!

Almost forty years ago, back on 12th Street between 8th Ave and Prospect Park West in Brooklyn, a group of people decided to hold a block party.  The money raised was for planting trees on each side of the street. 

And so we planted some trees.  The trees were so small, they were almost comical!  Still, they meant a lot to a small group of teenagers who lived on the block.  Teenagers like me.

Fast forward some years, and the last time I went back to Brooklyn, I actually saw those little saplings turn into beautiful, full grown, majestic trees! 

I looked up to the sky and thanked God for such a creation, for giving life to such a small seed planted in the hearts of a few people so many years ago!

Grocery Store Commotion Turns Into Kindness

"Some people!" snorted a man standing behind me in the long line at the grocery store. "You would think the manager would pay attention and open another line," said a woman. I looked to the front of the line to see what the hold up was and saw a well dressed, young woman, trying to get the machine to accept her credit card. No matter how many times she swiped it, the machine kept rejecting it. "It's one of them welfare card things. Damn people need to get a job like everyone else," said the man standing behind me. The young woman turned around to see who had made the comment. 'It was me,' he said, pointing to himself. The young lady's face began to change expression. Almost in tears, she dropped the welfare card onto the counter and quickly walked out of the store. Everyone in the checkout line ... Read Full Story >>

A Tale of The Missing Flowers

I allowed myself to receive. These flowers were gifted to me by our local florist. I had placed an order with him for flowers to be delivered to a dear friend overseas. For reasons unknown to both my florist and myself, the flowers were never delivered and after multiple contacts with the overseas supplier, who kept saying "tomorrow" for days on end (with no explanation!) we canceled the order. My florist called to apologize and said he wanted to send me a bouquet of flowers to make up for the mishap. Even tho I assured him it wasn't his fault & that he didn't have any control over the mishandling of my order, he insisted he wanted to send me flowers. We went back and forth on this & finally I realized this was something that would make him feel better and that I should just say thank you and let him ... Read Full Story >>

Secret Santa with a Difference

This will be the second year at our company when we do a Secret Santa exchange that makes a difference.

As with the usual gift exchange we all pull a name out of a hat and purchase a gift for that individual. The difference is that we envision our recipient as a child & choose a gift the child would enjoy. After we have all opened our gifts & gotten a good laugh, we collect up the toys and take them to one of the many Christmas toy drives in our city.

This is such a great way to have some fun together & make a difference in the lives of needy children during Christmas.

Hand in Hand on a Stormy Night

The train was not working that night as I was heading home.  I had to catch a bus and 2 hours later was dropped off in the middle of the town I was staying in.  The ice storm froze the ground and it was very difficult to walk.  I asked three people for directions, but they were too hurried to help.

Then I saw an old lady holding onto the corner post with her packages, afraid to move.  I asked her where she was going and it was at least 3  miles away.  I tried to find a cab or police car but I was told they do not stop in this neighborhood.

So, we proceeded to walk along, holding onto each other for dear life.  The roads were layered with a sheet of ice.  Then and there I decided that I could not leave this old lady alone like this.  So, I decided to walk her home, hand in hand, for a good 2 hours.  Later that evening, I finally reached my destination  wet and exhausted but filled with joy and love for life.

Kindness Adventures On Our Block

I spend a lot of time at home, so there are many opportunities to interact with our great neighbors.

Today, I got a phone call from an older neighbor who lost her balance while bending over her little dog's water bowl and had fallen down.  I immediately ran over to her house with a cold gel-pack in hand! Then, I stayed a while, took some cute pictures of her pup with my cell phone, saw that she was okay, and returned home.  

She just called again to tell me not to worry, she is okay.

Upon returning home from her house, just as I was closing my door, I saw another neighbor (who is also a senior) climbing up a small ladder to hang something in her tree.  The ladder looked precariously perched, so I ran over to check on her. She thanked me, but refused my help. I told her I would stay next to her, just in case. :)

Both these women live alone and are very independent. They are a huge inspiration!

Giving a Stranger Some Hope

My ex-husband gives me money to help me pay-off a joint credit card we had when we were married. Since he doesn't have good enough credit to have a bank account, he gives me $500 in cash every month. 

Once when I was returning from his place with the cash, a woman at the corner held up a sign that simply said HUNGRY.  Where I work, there are the same few panhandlers every day, but this was in a residential part of town and it was starting to snow.  I rolled my window down and passed her a bill.  She started to mumble thanks, but then smiels as she noticed it was a twenty.  I said she could get a nice hot breakfast a block away at the pancake house.

Twenty bucks isn't going to pay off my debt any sooner and maybe it will give a stranger strength and hope to go on.

A Blanket of Sisterhood

I have been doing what I can to look out for someone who lives close inside my heart though the daily lives we experience are quite far apart .  In my home, I wake up to a fresh morning, experiencing the luxury and warmth of the comfort of my own bed laden with a floral quilt that my grandmother once made for me. On the opposite coast of the country, within the confines of the lonely hospital walls, my sister rests often unpeacefully and in pain on a cold and firm plaster white sterilized bed. A cancer inside her is spreading despite a recent mastectomy and three months of intense chemotherapy. Radiation was not a possibility for her and now this condition has seeped into her skull and spine. The comforter which I grip so tightly begins to unravel in my hand and the texture of the fabric begins to soil, as I feel a piece of me lying there with her in the hospital room.  In order to keep myself from crumbling, I began to send blessing blankets, little toy angels, and a book of ... Read Full Story >>

The Original Warm Fuzzy Tale

Once upon a time, a long time ago there lived two very happy people called Tim and Maggi with their two children, John and Lucy. To understand how happy they were you have to understand how things were in those days. You see, in those happy days everyone was given, at birth, a small soft Fuzzy Bag. Anytime a person reached into this bag he was able to pull out a Warm Fuzzy. Warm Fuzzies were very much in demand because whenever somebody was given a Warm Fuzzy it made him feel warm and fuzzy all over. People who didn't get Warm Fuzzies regularly were in danger of developing a sickness in their backs which caused them to shrivel up and die. In those days it was very easy to get Warm Fuzzies. Anytime that somebody felt like it, he might walk up ... Read Full Story >>

Pay-It-Forward Ice Cream Coupons

A long while back, my son and I were having ice-cream at a Baskin Robbins near our home and we decided to "pay it forward" by anonymously treating a dad and his kids to ice-cream.  We left the store before they knew what was going to happen and my son and I smiled to ourselves as we walked home. Well, the other night, as I was reading Darwin's "Voyage of the Beagle", a coupon for a free of pint of Baskin Robbins ice cream fell out of the library book!  Talk about what goes around, comes around.  I didn't say a word to anyone at home, and went about my daily errands.  That day, my son had been particularly helpful (doing things without being asked), so I decided to surprise him with his favorite flavor of ice-cream.  Now, ice-cream is not normally found in our freezer so this is a ... Read Full Story >>

Meet Them Where They Live

It was a bad time for me. I was low emotionally and tired physically. Probably because of this I hadn't shaved for a few days. Also, because I had been doing some repairs at my daughter's house, I was dressed quite scruffily. Boarding the bus to go home I saw it was almost full so I found a rail to lean against. That's when a young woman, sitting with her child, stood up and offered me her seat. 'Wow!' I thought. Out loud I said, "Do I look that old and tired?" She replied, "You look like you've had a tough day." I thanked her sincerely and stayed standing. A moment later a man rose from his seat at the back of the bus and made his way towards me, squeezing past several people on the way. Then he told me about his addiction problems, asked my advice, and just chatted about ... Read Full Story >>

Expired Meters And A Pockeful Of Change

Just another simple one.  I noticed that I was walking with a slight list the other day due to a large amount of change in my right pocket. Now, I know that I could have shifted my ballast just a bit and evened things out, but there were cars parked there on expired meters :-)  Oh Darn!  It was a weekday too!  So I engaged in a paperwork reduction act of my own.  I figured that the metermaid wouldn't have to write so many tickets if I fed some meters.  Welp, I made a couple of blocks and was walking on a more even trim, and didn't have to shift ballast at all :-)

A Small Act of Kindness Makes it all Worthwhile

Today I went to my daughter's school and spoke about kindness to 60 kids plus teachers and teacher assistants. After a small talk about the meaning of kindness, I gave a challenge to the children - I told them to  write a small story about an act of kindness that they had done and how that made them feel. Or if they had received of an act of kindness how did that make them feel? In what way had that act changed them? Then I and the Deputy Head and the Head Teacher will choose the best ones, the one that will stand out for their feelings of compassion and love toward others. When I was waiting for my daughter I saw some teachers that were at the assembly passing by and I was hoping that they would tell me if they liked the talk or not, but they didn't say anything. Then this little boy came to me and said: "You know, I enjoyed the ... Read Full Story >>

The Imperfect Act of Kindness

I am in the midst of prolonged frustrations at work. Today was more of the same. I walked to the car remembering my act of kindness and feeling a little pressed for time and creativity. As I drove to the grocery store to pick up milk, I ran some scenarios through my head not landing on one I was satisfied with. I walked in, there was a table of vibrant yellow mums. I chose one and put it in my cart still not knowing what I was going to do with it. I find myself trying to figure out the perfect scenario for these acts of kindness knowing that it defeats the purpose, but I can't help myself. I left the store and while I was backing out of my parking space, I saw an older woman walking to her minivan. She was by herself and did not have much in her cart. I ... Read Full Story >>

The Invisible Woman

When I had breast cancer I had to have a lumpectomy, chemo and radiation (the works). The hardest part of that entire experience was losing my hair. I have strawberry blonde wavy hair down to the middle of my back which I have always considered one of my most attractive features. What was hard about losing my hair, though, was that I lost my anonymity with it. After I lost my hair it was like having a tattoo across my forehead that said "chemo patient." I am a very active, athletic person so to have people looking at me with pity as if I was an invalid or a leper was very hard to take. Of course they never said anything, but if I got in an elevator everyone looked away because they didn't know what to say. I didn't blame them, God knows I've done the same thing myself, but ... Read Full Story >>