Kindness On A Budget
It never ceases to amaze me how generous people who post on this site are. From those who are fortunate enough to be able to use some of their money to help others, people making things for others, or just giving up a moment of their time to someone in need. But what I would like to do here is offer some ideas on how to bring kindness into other people’s lives without needing to spend money. So here I offer some ideas for acts of kindness that only need you, your hands, your knowledge or your ears. 1. Help strangers find their way This is one I try to do every day if I can. Here in London we have some useful information panels scattered around with maps of the local area on them. If ever I see someone looking at the panel, or just looking at a map anywhere near where ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by Spoonerism
- Dec 5, 2011
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Secret Shopping In Iceland
I work just minutes from one of London’s busiest railway stations. Another minute or two away is a lovely, lively street with stalls selling Mexican, Thai and French food, as well as cafes, sandwich places and an Iceland which is one of the cheaper frozen food stores here in the UK. As I was walking around one lunch time I spotted a small elderly lady pushing an empty push-chair slowly along the pavement. I immediately wanted to do something for her but I felt a little strange following her around so I decided to continue my walk. Fate had other plans though. A few minutes later I passed Iceland and saw her putting groceries into her push-chair inside the store. That’s when I decided I’d try to pay for her shopping. The cashier looked at me kind of incredulously as I tried to explain that the money I was handing over ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by Spoonerism
- May 10, 2012
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Coffee, Diners and Smile Cards
Peapod and I just returned from a trip across the pond to see her parents and some of her friends back home in America. We had a great time, being somewhat spoiled by her folks :-) While we were away we kept our eyes open for opportunities and managed to leave a little kindness behind us on the way. Coffee and coffee houses seem even bigger over the water than they do in the UK, so one idea we had was to buy some $10 coffee cards and give them out to people as we wandered around the town. We quickly earmarked two particular people to give cards to. Earlier that afternoon we had been to a jeans store to exchange some jeans and the girl there really knew her stuff! Before we knew it Peapod had a replacement pair and an extra pair of jeans, while I was also buying a pair. The ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by Spoonerism
- Feb 3, 2011
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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 >>
- Posted by Spoonerism
- Feb 12, 2011
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Christmas Gratitude Cards
Hi everyone! I wanted to share a simple thing I have been doing over this Christmas period. We have a great drug store (chemist) called Boots here in the UK and I found some great small Christmas cards on a deal... each card worked out at something like 9p a card! I found some Christmassy (red, gold and green) glitter pens and wrote variations of the following: Hello there! This card is for you to thank you for all the work you do throughout the year. People nowadays live their lives at a crazy pace, and that sometimes means that your work gets taken for granted. So on behalf of everyone whose lives you touch every day: THANK YOU and MERRY CHRISTMAS. So far I think I have handed out about 35 cards to Nurses, Street sweepers, train guards, train drivers, bus drivers and anyone who seems like a good target. I hope when they open them they give them a ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by Spoonerism
- Mar 23, 2011
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