That's a wrap

Okay folks, that's a wrap - on April that is.  Of course just because the month ends today, doesn't mean our kindness ends.  We plan to be more kind each day.  I love the feeling when someone smiles and nods at me or when they say thanks.  Being a kind person isn't just for the folks you are kind to - it makes you feel good too!

those April showers

Has it been raining where you live? Somehow, I just thought of Judy Garland singing "it isn't raining rain you know, it's raining violets."  Anyway, they say that April showers bring May flowers.  Think about all we have to look forward to in the days ahead!

I have the power

Want to do good things?  I certainly want to, and I have the power!  Yup.  You better believe it.  But you have the power too.  Every single one of us have the power.  Let's all work together then and spread the good.  Let's sprinkle that love and kindness wherever we go.

Two-way street

Ever think about the number of people who call you or send you cards or email, or even the folks who text you?  Yes, it's lovely to get a card in the mail or receive a telephone call from a friend, but it's a two-way street.  WE can all send as well as receive.  Rather than saying "Nobody ever calls me," pick up the phone and place a call.  Don't worry if your inbox seldom has any emails.  Instead, send some yourself!

Message from a school

There is a school just down the street from where I live and the message on their signboard caught my eye yesterday.  It says "Choose kindness."

Words from Saint Teresa of Calcutta

During her lifetime, Mother Teresa (now Saint Teresa of Calcutta) said many inspirational things.  One of my favorites:  "I have found the paradox that if I love until it hurts, then there is no hurt, but only more love."

Comments or suggestions

Talking kindness every day I think is much harder than being a kind person.  How many ways are there to say it?  I'd hate to repeat myself, but I think kindness is so very important.  So, what do YOU think?  I would so love to hear your comments and suggestions!

Just one kind deed

One kind deed can change someone's day.  Just one kind deed.  Pretty amazing, huh?  One kind deed can even change lives!

Earth Day 2023

We know Dame Jane Goodall largely for her work with wild chimpanzees, but on this Earth Day 2023, I am reminded of something the primatologist and anthropologist once said: "You cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you. What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make."  Let's get out there and make a positive difference and let today be a day of action for our environment and for our planet.

distance yourself from negativity

Beautiful things happen when you distance yourself from negativity.  Try it!

Thoughts of Nana

Every April 20th I think of my grandmother - she was born on this date.  I think of Nana more than once a year though.  She was one of the kindest and fairest people I have ever known, and I learned a lot from her.  I think our entire family learned the importance of kindness because of her.

A Mental Exercise

Take just a moment to think about the last kind act someone did for you.  Picture that in your mind.  Now think about how it made you feel.  Imagine if everyone you encountered did something kind for you.  How would you feel then?  Hold that image in your mind.  Wow!  Now if we all practiced this same kindness, picture the results.  Oh my!

Random acts

Here we go with some more random acts of kindness.  Buy a pack of brightly colored stickers and give them to children you meet during the day.  Invite someone new for dinner, either in your home or in a restaurant.  Share your smile generously.  Buy some bottles of water and randomly hand them out to strangers on the street.  Clean graffiti from neighborhood walls and buildings.  Buy a stranger a free pizza.  Mow a neighbor’s grass or sweep a neighbor’s walk.  Offer to return a shopping cart to the store for someone loading a car.

exercise for the heart

It isn't easy to bear someone else's suffering or feel someone else's heart break, but with a heart of pure kindness, it is possible to feel empathy. There is no exercise better for the heart than reaching down and lifting people up.

From Miss Oprah Winfrey

Oprah Winfrey said "Be thankful for what you have; you'll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don't have, you will never, ever have enough."  She's right you know!

thankfulness and kindness

I am always thankful for the kind people and the kind moments in my life.  Even in difficult times, there is always something to be thankful for and there is never a moment for us not to be kind.  To me, kindness and thankfulness seem to go hand in hand.  I'm thankful too for all who read this daily blog and hope that someone has been influenced along the way.

many thanks

Every morning I get up and write something here about kindness.  I know I have said this before, but I really cannot say this enough.  Thank you!  Many thanks for being kind people and many thanks for reading my words.  I hope some of them inspire you.

two-fer

Amazing. For me it will always be amazing how wonderful it feels to make someone else feel good. I think that's what some folks call a two-fer. One act makes two people feel good (and probably many more, once they hear about it). One simple act of kindness. For me it will always be amazing.

In addition

In addition to being kind, let us also take a moment to observe the kind acts around us. Observe the little things. Watch how folks can bring a smile to others. You might be surprised at what you see. Sometimes we take things for granted, but if we just concentrate a little on doing and on seeing, I think we will all become kinder. It will be second nature.

Happy music

Does music make you happy?  The sun has been up where I am for less than an hour, but I am listening to happy peppy music (oldies) and it helps charge me up for the day and it certainly helps me to be happy.  I try to be pleasant and kind always, and being happy leads me in that direction.  You might say that good music makes me a kinder person.

sharing the candy

I hear there is a big sale on Easter candy beginning today!  Buying up some of it and sharing it is certainly a kind thing, don't you think?  Of course sharing the candy is always kind, even when you have to pay full price!

The Joy of Easter

Of all the days in the entire year, what could possibly be happier than Easter Day?  Oh and talk about kindness - oh my!  Alleluia!  Alleluia!

More kind things to do

Take an acquaintance to dinner.  Sponsor people in fundraising walk-a-thons.  Buy cold drinks for the people next to you at a ball game.  Spend some time serving food at a meal program for the needy.  Remember the bereaved with phone calls, cards, plants, and food.  Leave a treat or handmade note of thanks for a delivery person or mail carrier.  Share some ideas here.  There's never an end to kindness.

Kind coffee cake

Today is National Coffee Cake Day.  Did you know that?  My mouth began watering the moment I thought about coffee cake and then my heart was glad when I remember that kind cake someone made especially for me.  WAY back when I was just a teen, a lady where I lived used to make a delicious mace cake.  Oh my!  It was so yummy!  I was never able to duplicate it myself, but I mentioned it to a woman a few years ago and told her how much I missed it.  That's where the kind cake came it - she made a wonderful coffee cake with mace that tasted so much like the one I remembered from years earlier.  What a kind thing to do!

Kind thoughts and actions

I'm not an expert, but it seems to me that if we think kind thoughts, we are more likely to do kind actions.  Agree?  Okay then, let's do both!

Happiness to you

Hello!  Thanks for stopping by!  I mean it.  I appreciate that folks read my messages here.  Do come back often.  I write something here every single day.  The theme is being kind to others and to ourselves.  I hope that something I write here inspires you.  Do feel free to forward this to others too.  Much happiness to you always!

Remembering Roger Ebert

Film critic Roger Ebert died on this date in 2013. One of the things I remember about him is his encouraging words. He once said “To make others less happy is a crime. To make ourselves unhappy is where all crime starts. We must try to contribute joy to the world. That is true no matter what our problems, our health, our circumstances. We must try.”

Joy to the world

Joy to the world!  Sound like Christmas huh?  Nope.  It's not Easter yet either.  No reason we shouldn't be spreading joy though.  Joy begins with each one of us.

unkind

To me, unkind is such a foreign concept.  We might not all be as sweet and nice as the next person, but unkind to me says mean and rotten.  How could anyone act that way?  Yet sadly, there are some who do.  Oh how wonderful it would be if there were never an unkind action again!

Spring into kindness

How about another month of kindness!  Nobody wants to say no to that.  It's April 1st and I'm no fool.  Let's put aside the jokes and spring into kindness.