Search Results for 'popular' (2975 matches)

The Monkey Lives On!

Coming home after a work's evening out I lost my purse. I guessed it had fallen out my bag as I was being dropped off. While it was probably very close to my house I couldn't find it and had to cancel my debit cards, etc.  I'd had the purse for ten years as it was a Christmas present. It was a bright, red leather, Cheeky Monkey purse, so probably not very grown up for a 36 year old but I was very upset to have lost him!   Everyone I spoke to said I might get the purse back eventually but the money and vouchers in there would very likely disappear. I had therefore written off the contents of the purse and was even considering whether to move on and go "grown-up" when I was seeking a replacement.    I came home late the next night and my monkey purse was on my mat! ... Read Full Story >>

Gypsy Girl On a German Bus

While we were riding the old German bus in Tirana (Albania), a gypsy girl entered. Seven years old. Most gypsy kids have a 'dead' look in their eyes. Hardened by the world, by what they have experienced. The Albanian gypsies live in slums, their children beg on the streets so that the parents can afford to buy alcohol and continue their addiction. Girls as young as twelve wash car windows at the stoplight, holding a baby with their other arm. Little kids lay down on the sidewalks of Tirana to catch some sleep and rest their dirty limbs. Everytime we saw this hardened 'dead' look in their eyes. But not this girl. She was radiant. A beautiful smile across her face, sparkling eyes. She just stood there, in between me and my two friends. Flip flops, black t-shirt, short messy brown hair which matched her tomboy personality. A joyful presence. She ... Read Full Story >>

The First Earning Of My Life

I'm doing a work-experience internship at a hairdressing salon, and I noticed the other day that an old woman who had came in to get her hair permed, was sitting at the back of the shop and was looking rather sad.

So, naturally, I went over there and struck up a conversation with her. It turns out that she had just came out of hospital after weeks of treatment because she had a bad heart; to make matters worse, her daughter had recently given birth to a premature baby.

I sat and listened to her the whole time she was there, comforted her and just gave her words of advice and my philosophies. When she was finally ready to leave, she said,'You've made my day, duck. It's people like you I'll never forget.'

She tipped me one pound.

And that was the first money that I had earned in my life.

The Magical Twenty Dollar Bill

Recently, my husband was on a long drive and picked up a young hitch-hiker. 

They had plenty of time to talk and my husband discovered the young man had little money and was hoping to get a job in the city. My husband shared his lunch with him, bought him a coffee and when they arrived in the city, he gave him bus fare and twenty dollars to help him out.  A simple act of kindness.

Guerrila Repairs for the Homeless Folks

I go to Goodwill or some other used merchandise place, buy laptops which need a bit of work such as a new hard drive, memory, etc. and repair them for use by the homeless. Many job applications these days have to be done online, and this gives them the ability to do so.

The homeless person can go into someplace like McDonalds or Starbucks and get online, apply for jobs. The computers may cost me at most ten or twenty dollars as is, and myparts for repair are most of the time salvaged from other computers I have around and I use those parts to fix the machines.

I am professionally trained as a hardware repair technician and photographer/filmmaker and also am a musician. I will fix up guitars for the homeless sometimes too, or some other instrument or perhaps a camera on occasion.

A Simple Kind Thought Is More Than Enough

As I am writing this I am thanking my lucky stars for having a best friend in my husband. Unfortunately we have been going through a rough time due to his illness and sometimes it seems the whole world is covered by a big dark cloud. Then, by looking for kindness, I found this site. It really has made me think about how to help each other as well as others. I am truly grateful for what we have been through as it has brought my husband and I, our family and his family so much closer. If we hadn't been through the last ten years dealing with the illness I would have not learned so many lessons. I belive we are never given more than we can handle. A hug when someone is low or a ear to listen to a problem can sometimes be the biggest gift we can give. We don't have lots ... Read Full Story >>

I Am Thankful For ...

I am thankful: For the wife Who says it's hot dogs tonight, Because she is home with me, And not out with someone else. For the husband Who is on the sofa Being a couch potato, Because he is home with me And not out at the bars. For the teenager Who is complaining about doing dishes Because it means she is at home, Not on the streets. For the taxes i pay Because it means I am employed For the mess to clean after a party Because it means i have Been surrounded by friends. For the clothes that fit a little too snug Because it means I have enough to eat.   For my shadow that watches me work Because it means I am out in the sunshine   For a lawn that needs mowing, Windows that need cleaning, And gutters that need fixing Because it means i have a home For all the complaining I hear about the government Because it means We have freedom of speech.   For the parking spot I find at the far end of the parking lot Because it means i ... Read Full Story >>

A Profound Urge To Do Something Outrageously Kind

Yesterday, I wasn't having the greatest day. I lost my wallet, and luckily I found it, but the whole mishap messed up the rest of my day. In the evening, I was reading stories on My Life is Average, and then switched to Gives Me Hope. Reading about so many positive experiences and contributions to society from so many different people made me feel very cheerful. After reading, I was getting ready for bed in an altogether happy mood, and as I was getting out of the shower, I had a wonderful idea. I had this profoud urge to do something outrageously nice for someone whom I don't feel like I've ever done anything explicitly nice, my mother. That's not to say that I don't love her and tell her as such, but doing the little acts of kindness, those usually escape me. And it's not just me that forgets to do ... Read Full Story >>

Remembering the Feeling of Being Lost as a Kid

I was in Macys a few days ago with my mom, aunt, and my sister. Usually, I am one of those people who does not like to go shopping with my family.  I get all grumpy and get in a bad mood. However, I decided this time to suck it up and join them. My aunt and I were looking for some things to buy for our family when I noticed two chairs on the side.  One of them had a little girl sitting on it with her family nearby and the other one was empty.  So, I decided to sit down.  While I was doing my own thing, I noticed that the family was not in front of the girl anymore. I saw the girl get up and look around for her family. She came back and I saw her in tears, crying. I knew that she lost her family and ... Read Full Story >>

Little Free Library For ...

Little Free Library For Our Town Update

Grandpa spent the weekend measuring twice and cutting once and drilling and hammering covering up all the open sides of our 'doll house'. This coming weekend ought to see the waterproofing and paint happen and the doors added.

Cost still at 7$ - It was 8$ with a dollar off a purchase of 5$ and all the bits of wood and screws,etc,...were already here.

We have about 20 books inside already and they were mostly FREE. Cost there, so far, is about $2.50.

The 'make it official' package I sent away for a few weeks ago is due shortly. They said 4-5 weeks and it's already been half that. Cost 40$

Soooo very soon (fall launch perfect!), for very little money, and not SO much work, Our Town WILL have its very own Little Free Library! :)

A Prayer For Ella

Ella is my best friend and adopted sister. She was, at one time, a vibrant and active person. She taught school for a time, worked in local politics to change environmental policies in her area, and volunteering in many other places. I remember a time when Ella pulled out her wallet and wrote a check for a woman who had no rent money and was in danger of getting kicked out of her home. She never even stopped to think about it. Nor did she know the woman. When I was going through my most painful times, Ella was right there beside me. She was always on my side and on the side of "right". A while back, Ella had an accident that resulted in major brain injury. She lost her career, and most of her abilities to care for even herself. Between her sister, husband, some terrific public nurses and homemakers, ... Read Full Story >>

A Lost Wallet Returned, Across 3 Continents

It was May in Bangkok, and even though I had arrived from India after 6 months of volunteer work, the heat and humidity was exhausting.  After a long day of temple visiting, I fell asleep on the sky train for about 5 minutes, only to wake up seconds before the door was about to slam shut at my stop.  As I rush out onto the platform, I realize that my wallet is gone! First thought: I'd been pickpocketed while I slept on the train. Second thought: Bravo to the pickpocket! My wallet had been in my front pocket and I was sitting down with my backpack on my lap.  Given the heat and stickiness, even I had trouble getting my wallet out of my pocket, but the alleged thief managed to do so despite the awkwardness and obstacles, without waking me up.  She certainly deserved something for that, and I had no ill ... Read Full Story >>

The Christmas Kindness Project

  I am a social worker and substance abuse counsellor. I wanted to tell everyone about my very dear friend and mentor who passed away a few months ago. I met him many years ago while doing my internship in the county correctional facility. He was directing a program he had designed to help inmates with their drug and alcohol problems. He was always coming up with novel ways to bring hope and help to these men and their families. One of his favorite events was the toy drive he would run every Christmas for the children of the inmates. He did this for twenty years until his sudden death. As last Christmas approached I decided that this tradition HAD to be carried on, for the children as well as the memory of my friend. But the file where he kept the names of the people who had helped him over the years had gone ... Read Full Story >>

Take One or Leave One

Today my husband and I started something awesome. The sign says "Cold? Take one. Extra? Donate one." It's been so cold these past weeks. It worries us just thinking about those people who are less fortunate.  
 

#ShareKindness

It's amazing how one dollar can change the culture of a school. We have a small school of about 30 middle/high school students (It's actually one of a global setup). It can get really competitive and stressful as most of the kids get good grades and strive to be the best they can be. It's good except that a lot of us middle kids felt really pressured.  The feeling was one that had sort of turned into 'every man for himself'. In response, my friend and I set out to find a way to change the culture. We decided that doing things for others was the only way to get ourselves over our depression about school and we stumbled on this website and a few others. On the first day of school we snuck a dollar folded into a heart into one of the senior's lockers with a slip of paper that said, "Buy ... Read Full Story >>

The Cashier's Surprise

My son and I were grocery shopping. As usual at the checkout they had the usual fine display of chocolate temptations and other sweet goodies. 

Instead of asking for something my son whispered to me, "Let's ask the cashier if this chocolate is any good and then, as we're leaving, we can give it to him!" 

I smiled and watched the magic unfold.

The cashier chatted with us about all kinds of things. Then my son, very casually, asked about the chocolate. The guy said, "Oh, yeah. Those are really good!" And then, as we were walking away with our groceries, my son handed the chocolate to the cashier and said, "This is for you!" 

The guy was like, "Really? No! That's ok." But my son just smiled and said, "Yeah, really! It's for you!" 

And we both walked off, smiling broadly. 

A Saturday Well Spent

Today my heart is full of joy and gratefulness for my family and for the beautiful people I encountered today.  My husband worked all night as a police volunteer and got home at 5.30 a.m. in the morning and then left at 4 p.m. this afternoon for another shift. My daughter spent the morning with some friends and neighbors raising money  for a very famous charity in our town and also helped one of her friend's dad raise money for a sponsored climb of a mountain in Morocco. And what did I do? Well, I bought some cakes for my daughter and her friend and gave a smile card to the gentleman that was selling the cakes, plus a card that said,  "May all your days be filled with Love." I went to the library and left the cards inside the magazines and books and on the shelves so people could find them. I ... Read Full Story >>

The Mystery Gardener

Sometime back our lawn mower broke down beyond repair. We got someone to mow the lawn for us from time to time but that was getting a little costly.  Then a young boy used to come down to our house every so often to do some odd jobs to save up for a bike, so we gave him the job of mowing the lawn with his mum's permission & lawn mower!  But, being young, the boy had more interesting things to do, especially after he saved up enough money to buy himself a new bike!  

As the days went on, our lawn was getting longer & longer, even with the drought. The other day I went out to the front garden & I couldn't believe my eyes -- the lawn had been mowed!  I reckoned it was our kindly neighbour, but when my hubby went to thank him, he said it wasn't me.  So, it remains a mystery who was behind this anonymous act of kindness. I truly love those kinds of mysteries...

To all of you mystery helpers around the globe, bless you with love, joy, peace & everything else.

Struggling to Make Ends Meet

While I was shopping at the Family Dollar Store I noticed a young mother with her daughter struggling to pick out items she needed because she counting money in her hand.  She got behind me at the check-out counter.  As I began to pay for my items, she began to put a few items back after realising she did not have enough money left in her hand.  She had shampoo and I saw her put the conditioner back.  The lady looked like she hadn't bathed in weeks and her child was also really dirty.  

My heart really went out for this poor lady and her child.  I paid for my items and then I passed the clerk a $10.00  bill and a smile card.  I told her to wait until I left the store and then to give the money and the smile card to the girl behind me.  I hope I made a difference in a small way.

Service With A Smile at the Sprint Store

Yesterday I upgraded my cell phone at the Sprint store and got the new Rumor.  I love it.  While I was standing there, I was thinking to myself, "These people are providing GREAT customre service, I wish I could tip them or something."  I was so geeked about my new phone, it didn't even dawn on me that I could tip them with a smile card and some cash and say "Go get yourself a coffee or something."   But another very happy customer in the store did it for me by leaving $5 on the counter.  The employee said, "Sir, we can't accept tips," and the customer responded, "I'm not taking it back, it's yours!." So, like Wonder Woman, I swooped over and said, "Here, have one of these!" and I whipped out a Smile card.  I handed the card to the other customer and said, "Give them this. It's an experiment in anoymous acts of kindness. If they can't ... Read Full Story >>