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A Change of Plans

We moved house 9 months ago. Before that we had lived in the same house for 20 years. Our next door neighbours had lived in their house even longer, so we have known them for the full 20 years. They are a lovely retired couple, Bob and Jean, a lot older than us. Truly good friends.

Bob has just gone into hospital having suffered a serious stroke and is not expected to live. We cancelled our plans and took a 2 hour round trip to visit him on Sunday in hospital.

I don't know if he could hear us, but we sang some happy songs and told him all our news. Until, that is, we couldn't hold back the tears and then we hugged and cried together, including Jean who was managing a bedside vigil.

Then Jean made us all laugh about some of the good fun times we have had together. A truly amazing person, always putting others before herself and who has twice recovered from cancer herself. Blessings on my wonderful friends Bob and Jean.  

An Act of Honesty Saves a Vacation

My oldest daughter is on vacation this week. She called last night to tell us that she arrived safely in North Carolina. She said, "Don't get mad but I lost my wallet." Then she quickly added, "But it's been returned to me!" She had left the highway to get gas and some food. Her boyfriend was in a hurry to get going  because they had a few more hours to drive before reaching their desitination. She placed her wallet on the car roof, put the puppy in the back seat, and quickly jumped into the car. Off they went, with the wallet still on the roof! They were about a  half hour away and they came to a toll booth. She reached in her purse for her wallet and couldn't find it. She had a lump in her throat as she remembered leaving it on the roof. She started to cry. Then, almost ... Read Full Story >>

Lightness In My Step

This morning during my walk I had the good fortune of meeting someone I have been wanting to cross paths with for some time. I had seen this elderly gentleman before. A few months ago he was collecting cans and bottles from the recycle bins behind my house. I was shocked to see this and saddened by the fact that he had to do this to survive. I thought about putting bottles in a bag for him with a note attached saying that the bag was for him to take, but then thought it may not be the best idea from a safety standpoint. So I let it go. One rainy day in the spring I saw him again riding his bike with bags of bottles attached to his backpack and handle-bars. My heart sank. I felt powerless thinking I could never connect with him. So you can imagine my surprise when I ... Read Full Story >>

A Sparkling Heart From A Simple Gesture

This is just a small story but it really warmed my heart.   I'd gone to collect my daughter from her music lesson when I saw this older woman walking around. She looked completely lost.   I had no idea why she would be in that area. It's in a business park and it was at the weekend when there aren't usually many people around. And why would she be in that parking lot which is totally off the beaten path?I guessed she was probably really lost. It turned out she had missed her turning and needed to find her way to the highway. I tired to explain but she seemed too upset and confused for me to just explain how to get there, so I said, "Don't worry. Follow me and I'll take you there."     She looked at me and you could see the worry leave her face. She said, "Bless you," ... Read Full Story >>

Two In A Taxi For Four

The "share-taxi" normally wouldn't have left until it had four paying passengers in it. The only other passenger was a lady who seemed to be in quite a hurry, so I agreed to pay the remaining fares and got in.

Her mother had suffered a heart attack and this lady was going to collect her and take her to hospital. She started chatting, telling me how her two elder sisters do not care for her mother. She does all she can for her mother while having a husband and two children to look after. 

She had just pawned her jewels in order to raise money in a hurry.

She was glad to have someone to talk to until we reached her destination. I wished her well and said a silent prayer.

30 Acts of Kindness in 30 Days Challenge!

I am currently participating in a "30 acts of kindness in 30 days" challenge which I set myself. Let me explain! A dear friend of mine recently celebrated her 30th birthday. Rather than doing what most women of her age would do, she decided to host a "random acts of kindness" party, inviting her friends to participate in spreading some kindness in the world, and to spend money they'd have spent of a gift for her in acts of kindness to others. At the restaurant, she had a lucky dip draw, and everyone received an act of kindness they had to carry out anonymously. She'd also prepared cards for all those present, where she'd written to each guest personally, saying what they meant to her as a friend, and then passed them around the table for everyone else to add nice comments about each other. She explained to me that she was ... Read Full Story >>

Warmth for the body and the soul

This is so easy, inexpensive, and has always brought either of two reactions: a look of shock or a big smile. I am a cane walking senior lady with mobility issues, especially in cold weather but I have a keen eye for useful bargains and since I still drive, I can do this without having to get in and out of the car to help folks. Here is how it 'works'....when I see gloves, warm hats, and scarves on sale (new or in good condition from a thrift store) I buy them for pennies of what they could go for retail. If laundering is needed, I do it to remove tiny stains so everything looks good. I have a large basket with a handle that I keep in the passenger side of my car and I 'file' these things in it where I can easily reach over and get whatever I determine ... Read Full Story >>

A Note in my Lunch Box

At the beginning of this week I was touched to tears, when I opened my lunch box at work. Somehow I was feeling not so good that day, it was hard for me to get up in the morning, and so on.

When I opened my lunch box at work, I saw a little piece of paper. The piece of paper was a note from my mom saying that she loves me and wished me a blessed day!

My heart was so touched, I am so thankful that God gave me a mother that notices when I am a little down. The next day I had another note! My mom made a difference in my day and I will never forget this special touch of kindness!

Joy from Joining Helpothers.org

This is my first time so please bear with me. I am VERY new to all of this. I am still learning from HelpOthers.org. I came across this site while doing research for a presentation I did on "Positive Attitude at Work and at Home". I was inspired by the stories I read and enjoyed reading the daily kindness stories. I have been doing this for about 4 months (reading stories but not "participating" in submitting any stories). I am not computer savy so have been a little weary about joining a "group". I don't facebook, twitter, or any of that stuff so you can understand my hesitation. I finally got the courage to join and have not regretted that decision (in fact I know I should have sooner). The very first day I created a profile - I got two welcome messages and karma bucks. I was pleasantly surprised. I am truely ... Read Full Story >>

Southerly Winds Sweep In Smile Cards

Yesterday, I gave out my first Smile Cards!

There was a very strong, gusty southerly wind in town. While driving, I noticed some empty trash cans in the street. I stopped at the first one I encountered, placed it upside-down beside the curb (hoping it would not blow into the street again) and placed a Smile Card under it.

Then I drove on.

Talk about anonymous-- the recipient probably had no idea what a Smile Card is, who put it there, or even why it was there! I did this twice more on my way home from town, and it felt great! :)

A Snack That Turned Into Balloons

Often we do little acts of kindness and can’t really know what happens next… the people who benefit from the act return to their lives and we return to ours!  Our paths may never cross again.  But that’s not the case when a member of HelpOthers does a kind act to another member of HelOthers!  Here we can chart the ripples as we guide the kindness on its way!  Here’s one such story. You may have read Aurelia’s post about making Chex Mix for her family, or Bluebell’s post about receiving a snack from a friend in the US.  Well I sent some Karmabucks to Aurelia to find out more about her amazing snack and she offered to send some to me if I was based in the US.  Unfortunately I’m not, I live in the UK but luck would have it that I was off to America for a company event last ... Read Full Story >>

An Extra Dose of Compassion at the Hospital

Today I met an old lady when I was in hospital. I was done with my check-up and I was standing in medicine counter of the hospital to get my medicinal receipt and medicines.  I saw that the old lady was sitting in a nearby chair and waiting for something. She seemed a little distraught so I asked her if she was okay.

She told me that she was waiting for her son who was tied up with some personal work and he had told her that he could come back in a few hours. She said that she was feeling faint and tired. I rushed to the nearby hospital cafeteria and bought her some breakfast. I then got her prescription for her and paid for her medication along with mine. 

She had the breakfast and she was happy now. She also had the tablet and thanked me.

I was happier for showing kindness to her.

Finding That Positive Note

My step-son is going through an extremely difficult time in his life and is battling many personal issues.   He calls his father several times a day, often consumed by sadness and negativity, sometimes near his breaking point. Trying to be supportive and non-critical takes it's toll on us all, but we keep trying.    This morning on our drive to work I asked my husband to try ending the telephone conversation with his son by simply saying, "Now, tell me something good about today".     Some days that might be an easy thing to do, other days it may be nearly impossible. But even if the only thing he could can up with to say is, "You were there for me again today, Dad," that would at least give him something positive to focus on.    Tonight, I heard my husband say to his son, "Okay, now let's end on a positive note. Tell me ... Read Full Story >>

Just A Simple Thank You

The Divine at Work

Sitting in my Outlook inbox was an updated LinkedIn profile of Bogdan, who now lives in Bolivia. I sent him a message today as part of the Day 2 kindness challenge.  We stay in touch only a couple of times a year nowadays, but for a few years we were like brothers- still are really. The story that connects Bogdan and me is what I would like to share. It reminds me that I should send a Day 2 challenge greeting to Marcello, who now lives in Prague.  Here is what happened: In September 2011 I traveled by train to Stockholm. I was visiting 2 friends who were to meet me at the train station. I stood there waiting for my first friend to arrive and in the midst of all the hurrying commuters that Friday afternoon, I heard a faint voice, it sounded like a question. I turned and saw a young ... Read Full Story >>

Helping A Stranger In Need

During the holidays my sisters and I were walking through town when we noticed that a lady was struggling so much to try and carry her groceries..far too much to try and carry them by herself. People were passing on by without taking a second look. All at once together my sisters and I all said to ourselves "lets go help out this lady" without giving it a second thought. We carried all her groceries to her car which was parked about 5 minutes walk down the road.

She was so happy and as she thanked us, you could see the happiness across her face.  It didn't cost anything nor did it take anything out of our day..only those few minutes but let me tell you...it was the best time during the entire day...helping a stranger in need :)

Smiles all round :)

Learning in Unlikely Places

I went up to Peet’s Coffee the other morning and there was a young man, Mike, probably my age. With him he had all his physical belongings on a small roll cart. I first thought, how nice to have so little possessions. That was followed with the thought of how ironic it is that we live in one of the financially wealthiest areas of the U.S., if not the world, yet we can’t, or don’t, take care of the basic needs of human beings. Yes, we are financially wealthy, but we lack in wealth of compassion, kindness, understanding. I tear up as I ponder the inequality and injustice that exists.   Anyway, I invited Mike in for bite to eat and he eagerly accepted. He talked about looking up a friend for a place to stay that night. On Christmas Eve as many eagerly (and greedily) stuff their bellies with food in ... Read Full Story >>

Parking Lot Samaritan

After running errands with my daughter one day, I walked back to the car reminiscing with her about the nice people we'd had the pleasure to interact with. As I pulled my car keys from my coat pocket, my daughter pointed out, "Something just flew under the car."  Remembering that I had placed my debit card and ID in my pocket so I could access them easily in the checkout line, I knew exactly what had flown under our car. I crouched down to see them. My debit card and ID were wedged behind my tire, almost out of sight. Another woman in the parking lot saw my struggle, walked over to me, and asked if she could help. Without even waiting for me to answer, she said, "I see them!" Then, she got down on her knees and fished my cards from behind the tire of my car. As she handed them to me ... Read Full Story >>

Giving from the Heart Always Works

I work downtown and every morning, when I walk from the SkyTrain Station (our version of a subway) to the office, I usually see people who are sleeping outside, in business doorways and on sidewalks. It is truly heartbreaking to see so many people who are homeless. Most people will just walk by and few will stop to offer a kind word or any help of any kind. When I talk with others about the homeless situation, most people will tell me that most of them are drug addicts or dealing with mental illness. While some of the homeless are suffering from an addiction or mental illness, many may have become homeless due to an illness or sudden job loss. Today, I brought a bag with a toque (warm knit hat), pair of socks, bottle of water and a mini first aid kid with me. I saw someone sleeping outside of the Tim ... Read Full Story >>

Green Smiles

I remember that particular Monday morning well. Having signed up for a new website dedicated to random kindness (KindSpring.org), I suddenly received an email which stated that my idea had won. My idea had... won? Wait, were they talking about my idea for 'Green Smiles'? Green Smiles had always seemed more like a wishful daydream, some sort of fantasy which was inspired by the lack of green in my neighborhood. I wanted to make the neighborhood more 'green' in the broadest sense of the word. For example, I wanted to plant pretty flowers and even herbs in the small patches near the trees. Perhaps even transform the larger and often messy plots of 'green' near the parking lots. Put up insect-hotels so that children (and adults too of course ;)) would be able to enjoy the sight of a pretty butterfly more often. Or look in wonder at at a buzzing ... Read Full Story >>