Search Results for 'popular' (3005 matches)

What If Everyone Thought About Others Once A Day?

I have had the most amazing two days. Browsing through some threads on my favorite forum, I came across this thread where a guy was asked by his gardener to build a PC for him and his kids. He brought him an old box with some hardware in it but it was not working at all. The guy started looking at it and found out the specs and what he needed to do to fix it. He started a thread explaining the situation and asked if somebody had some cheap memory that he could buy (at his own cost) to fix this person's computer.  Not only did he get the memory for free, but a number of people offered him 2nd hand PC hardware that they were not using for no cost. It looks like he would have been able to build 2 PC's because of all the 'donations' this started as ... Read Full Story >>

Going The Extra 200 Miles On Mother's Day

A man stopped at a flower shop to order his mother some flowers for Mother's Day.  He was having the order wired to his mother, who lived two hundred miles away.


As he got out of his car he noticed a young girl sitting on the curb sobbing.  He asked her what was wrong and she replied, "I wanted to buy a red rose for my mother.  But I only have seventy-five cents, and a rose costs two dollars."


The man smiled and said, "Come on in with me. I'll buy you a rose."  He bought the little girl her rose and ordered his own mother's flowers.


As they were leaving he offered the girl a ride home.  She said, "Yes, please! You can take me to my mother."  She directed him to a cemetery, where she placed the rose on a freshly dug grave.


The man returned to the flower shop, canceled the wire order, picked up a bouquet and drove the two hundred miles to his mother's house.

Thanking A Veteran

I was headed into Walmart. I grabbed a shopping cart and noticed this older man with a walking cane struggling with his cart, As I approached to help him I noticed his cap with WWII and some decorative pins on it. I was more determined to help him now. :0) 

I asked can I help you? He said his cart wheels seem to be jammed. I took his two bags out and put them in my cart and asked can I help you to your car?  He was a proud man and said "I'm ok now that you've given me your cart".  I said "My pleasure and I patted him on the back of his shoulder and blurted out the words "Thank you for all you did for our Country"... He looked at me and said "WHAT?"  I repeated myself and tapped his hat.  Then he smiled widely and was on his way.  

I grabbed another shopping cart and would have been whistling a tune if I knew how to whistle that good.  I was happy that I made him smile like that.

I used to be afraid of not saying the right thing, but "Thank You" was all I needed to say.

Helping A Shy Boy To Make New Friends

A few days ago, I noticed a boy standing alone in the cafeteria before school.  The cafeteria was filled with girls and boys laughing and talking to each other.  I had never seen this boy before.  I assumed that he was new.

As I looked closer at him, I noticed that he seemed to be very sad.  I then walked over to him and started up a conversation.  I found that he was a very kind boy, just a little shy.  After the bell rang, I had to go to class but I told him that I would see him tomorrow.

As I said, I did see him the next day.  But to my surprise, he was standing talking to a group of kids.  I felt warmth in my heart when I saw this.  By my talking to him yesterday, I obviously made him gain confidence in himself.  The group that he was talking to seemed to really like him.  They always sat with him at lunch, and engaged him in conversation.

At the end of that day, I saw him walking out and he gave me a heart-warming smile.  I now realize what can happen if you start a chain reaction.

A Circle of Giving with New Friends

Last month my kindness idea allowed me to meet some new people in my community. When I delivered their food, I also gave each my phone number so they could keep in touch if they wanted.  All of them have called me since.

Having a bad spell with MS has left me pretty much in bed the last two or three weeks and feeling nearly helpless.

Yesterday, the young mother I had helped showed up at my house with a casserole. While she was here, she washed my dishes and carried out my trash. The young gentleman I had helped has been here twice, just to check on me. He has no transportation so he had to walk the several miles to where I live. 

In helping others, I have made new friends . What a blessing.

My Turn

Today it was my turn to receive a random act of kindness.

I was visiting relatives in Anchorage, Alaska, and my wife was in the hospital with viral meningitis. It was her first day and she was feeling poorly.

I went to the cafeteria to get some breakfast and after looking around, I decided on eggs and sausage. As I went to pay, the clerk said there was no charge because the person in front of me had paid my bill.

I looked up and didn't see anyone at first, but when I went around a corner, she was standing there. I asked if she was the one who had bought me breakfast and she said that she was.

I thanked her and asked if she often "paid it forward". She was surprised that I had recognized her act as a random act of kindness.

She said she did it to welcome me to the hospital and hoped I would enjoy my "day on the planet".

At that moment, I found myself in tears. It gave me a boost to handle the issues that were facing me.

The Gift of Home Cooked Meals for an Old Lady

I sometimes see an elderly woman along the road across from my house. Finally, I have been able to reach out to her with daily meals. At first, I would giver her some money everyday to get some food from a nearby shop but I realised that did not suit her.  I thought that maybe this old lady needed home-cooked food, so now I provide her lunch everyday instead.  Today, I got meet this woman. I sat with her on the road to just check how she was.  The moment she saw me approaching, she wished me well with folded hands and I said "namaste" to her. I introduced myself and she said she knew I was the one giving her food.  We talked for 30 minutes. She told that she came to Delhi in 1974 to work as a domestic helper to an Anglo-Indian family from Bangalore. After some years, the family moved abroad and she continued working in different houses. Seven years ago she met with an accident and used up all ... Read Full Story >>

A Teenage Daughter's Good Deed Made Me Proud

My daughter Lizzie called all excited to share her experience with me.  "Mom, I did a good deed today and you'd be so proud of me!"   and of course I am.

Here's what happened....

After wok, Lizzie had to stop for gas.  She was at the station waiting in line to pay. It seems the lady in front of her was from out of town and really lost. The person behind the counter was trying to help her with directions, but the lady was so confused and afraid.

Lizzie knew exactly where the lady wanted to go and she offered to go there and let the lady Follow her.  The lost lady was soooo appreciative.  Lizzie said it felt good to help a stranger.

So when your teens seem to be nothing but sassy and selfish...remember,  they are watching you and learning. In a few years they'll be out in the world with memories of what they've seen you do.  I feel so blessed to see this happening.

A Small Act - But A Big Impact

I am the mother of three little ones all under the age of five. One of my children has Celiac Disease, I have Multiple Sclerosis, and other members of our family have various food intolerances. None of these titles or limitations has ever stopped us from finding a balance and being creative in our thoughts towards happiness. We help out bodies to be their strongest, and happiest, through the foods we eat. This means getting creative in the kitchen to make all bellies happy but I have to be especially creative because our food budget is very stretched. My hubby took a brave journey and switched careers about five years back and went to medical school. He graduated this past spring and when he finished the finances, or lack there of, really began to be felt. We have kept on smiling because we know in the end it will all be worth it ... Read Full Story >>

Band-Aid Smiles

This idea is so simple, and I've been doing it for SO many years that I never even gavea thought to posting it here before.

I carry "children's bandages" - you know those fancy printed or brightly colored ones that kids love - in my purse, tucked into an old, small plastic "raincap holder". Over the years, I have seen quite a few parents dealing with a crying child who has fallen and scraped a knee. I immediately reach into my purse and bring out one of those bandages, hand it to the parent and move on. Of course, it won't always make the scrape feel better, but it does usually ease the crying of the child and tension of the parent. I ALWAYS get a smile.

12 Days of Kindness

For my third day of the Twelve Days of Valentines Kindness, in honor of my wife, I decided to share a story about how kindness boomerangs back to us, after a request by deepula. As perhaps another example of this, the kindness I'm doing for my wife may just be having an effect on her.  Her boomerang hit me hard and with lots of love!  She posted four post-its with song lyrics peppered with little hearts on the bathroom mirror yesterday.  One was a Hindi song called “Kabhi Kabhi” with lyrics that translate as follows: "Every so often my heart feels as though you were made for me.  You used to live somewhere in the heavens.  And you were called to earth for me..." The other song was “My Song” from Moulin Rouge: "It's a little bit funny...this feeling inside.  I'm not one of those...who can easily hide.  I don't have much money  :-(  ... Read Full Story >>

I Saved A Life ...

I Saved A Life By Shoveling .................................................By A Friend • January 21, 2019 My neighbor is a paramedic, him and his wife are some of the nicest people I have ever met. A few years back we started this sort of "favour war" where one of us would do something for the other, such as shovel their driveway or help them build a shed, and next time the other would try to top it with another favour. Yesterday morning there was maybe 2 or 3 feet of snow on the ground (we live in a northern Ontario town so this is typical) and I remembered he shovelled my driveway for me last snowfall. So I bust out my shovel and take care of both our sidewalks and driveways because it was my turn to do a favour back. It takes a while but I finish and get into my car for work. ... Read Full Story >>

Dubai Market

A few of us friends got together for a random acts of kindness event at a flea market in Dubai. 

We collected items from our homes, our neighbors, and our friends, which could make good gifts. Then we put up a bright and chirpy stall at the market, put all our gifts on display, and took a lot of people by surprise! 

We had a gratitude board too, where people pinned up their answers to the question, "What are you grateful for?" 

And we had a basket full of kindness ideas for people to pick up and, hopefully, put into practice!

It was a beautiful, beautiful day!

The Insight of Children

I took my children into the city last night to meet up with my husband to celebrate my daughter's 6th birthday.  We walked through the downtown area while we waited for him to get out of owrk.  In front of one of the subway stops was a woman sitting with a can.  As we walked by, my daughter asked what she was doing and I told her that she was probably homeless and was trying to get some money.  My daughter  looked back and asked if on the way back she could give the woman some money.  I told her that she absolutely could do that, and we continued exploring.   Later on during our walk, we  found a bed of cardboard and blankets.  My daughter knew what it was and wanted to know who it belonged to so she could give them a dollar or two.  We moved on, and she played ... Read Full Story >>

Being Alive and Well Fed

This morning I asked myself a question: ‘What does being alive mean to me?’. The question eventually led me to this moment now. Well, isn’t it only to be in the now to be alive, anyways? Well, at this particular moment-right now - being alive means sharing the abundance of kindness in a story. Two years ago, I was hitchhiking and a friendly man in his mid-sixties pulled over. Curt was brimming over with stories spiced with his joy for living. My journey to the chiropractor didn’t take it’s usual 3 or so rides.  Curt altered his route to drop me off directly in front of the office 45 minutes later. During the ride, I learned that Curt was just dropping off a van-load of free food for people in my small town.  He did this weekly just because "It is so fun to bring people food which otherwise would have gone ... Read Full Story >>

Making Sure to Thank the Referees

I spent my Saturday at the basketball court watching all three of our kids play their games.  My older two had playoffs as they worked to be in the championship game.  During the third game of the day I commented to my husband that these playoff games were getting a little overly rough and competitive and it was making me nervous. As my son's game continued, the fans around us starting making light-hearted comments about the refs' calls - or lack of.  These were the same ref's my son's team has had all season and I think they are a GREAT pair - which I said often during the game.  The refs had a sense of humor and grinned and nodded as the comments continued to come. It was an intense and physical game and I was cheering loudly!  It was a tight game to the end, but my son's team did end ... Read Full Story >>

Taking the Extra Step to 'Pay-it-Forward'

I wanted to do a random act of kindness for my friend’s birthday, so on Friday I went to Walmart to carry out my gift to her because I think people who shop there do so to save money and could use a gift. My gift in honor of her birthday is a birthday cake!  I selected a cupcake birthday cake for which the recipient of the gift can pick any design they wish. My plan is for the next person who walks up to the bakery counter to purchase a cake to be told that someone has anonymously paid for their cake, and for them to then receive the receipt along with my handwritten message explaining the gift along with a Smile Card attached. It took some doing/convincing!  I had to speak to 2 members of the management and make 2 trips to the store.  I was turned down the first time ... Read Full Story >>

Top Ten Kindness Stories of 2012, Story #10 - 8 Things To Do Every Day That Will Make You Happier

1) Thank someone First thing in the morning, send an email thanking or praising someone. Research shows this can brighten your day.   2) Spend money — on someone else Harvard professor Michael Norton, author of Happy Money: The Science of Smarter Spending, explains how spending money on other people can generate more happiness than spending on yourself: 3) Give 5 hugs People assigned to give or receive hugs 5 times a day ended up happier than the control group. From Sonja Lyubomirsky’s very interesting book, The How of Happiness: In a one-of-a-kind study, students at Pennsylvania State University were assigned to two groups. The first group was instructed to give or receive a minimum of five hugs per day over the course of four weeks and to record the details. The hugs had to be front-to-front (nonsexual) hugs, using both arms of both participants; however, the length and strength of hug, as well as the placement of hands, were left ... Read Full Story >>

My 7 Year Old ...

My 7 year old daughter wanted to do some kind act for our mail man. So she made a thank you card, drew a picture. She also taped an organic fruit bar as a small gift. Also tagged him with a smile card. She is so excited:))seeing her smile makes me smile :)))

A Thanksgiving Tradition

I'm starting to actually feel the "connect" that many here always talk about. Today we went out for Thanksgiving dinner with my husband's family (it's a new tradition. I don't like it, I'd prefer to cook but due to transportation problems that's just the best solution for now) And, same as last year, I think that if the waiters have to spend their holiday working, then I'm going to tip them as much as I possibly can to express my appreciation, and I put the tip in a handmade thank you card and I write them a short message. So that's what I did today. My husband gave the server the card and a few minutes later the server came over, and I saw his hands shake really bad. And he thanked us profusely and he said that holidays are traditionally "bad tip days" (he said because people go gift shopping right after) ... Read Full Story >>