Kindness Is Something You Share

Kindness is more than sharing a feeling. Kindness in me meets needs in you. It is not just a thought, but an action. It is practical.

Back in 1991, Glamor Magazine had an editorial about a woman who drove up to the toll booth of the Bay Bridge in San Francisco and said, “I’m paying for myself and for the 6 cars behind me.” One after another the next 6 drivers came up to the booth with dollars in hand only to be told, “Some lady up ahead already paid your fare. Have a nice day.”

This random act of kindness was inspired by an index card the woman saw on a friend’s refrigerator. It said, “Practice random acts of kindness and senseless beauty.” The friend saw the saying spray painted on a warehouse wall. Her husband liked it so much he put it on the blackboard of his 7th grade class. One of the students was the daughter of a columnist. She took it home to him, and he put it in his column in the paper.

Soon, random acts of kindness were being done by people all over the country. Bumper stickers were made, and people were putting the idea on letters and business cards. Articles came out in Reader’s Digest, Ladies Home Journal, Red Book, and People’s Weekly. The idea was so simple: anything you think there should be more of in this world.... do it randomly. It is a great idea that was a fad for the world, but it is to be a way of life for those that are discovering the power of one anothering.