Did you know that February 9 – 15th 2015 is random acts of kindness week? Yep. You might have heard the awesome stories around the holidays about people paying of lay-a-ways and things of that nature. Those things are super awesome. I wish I was in a position to do something like that. But just because I can’t afford to pay off people’s layaways doesn’t mean you can’t do something meaningful for free.
I want to tell you a story about a stranger who did a random act of kindness for me. I was living in South Carolina years ago. My two oldest children were very small. My oldest about two years and my youngest was only about 6 months or so. I was going through an extremely difficult time in my life. I was about to go through a divorce with my first husband after I found out he was cheating on me. We had some serious financial issues and no family in the state to reach out to. I had gone to Walmart by myself and bought a little bit of groceries. I had the two little ones in the cart. As I stepped out the doors of Walmart it was pouring down rain. Fitting, I Thought. I made my way to my car, opened the car door to get my one son in. An older man comes running over to me with an umbrella in his hand. I’m embarrassed to say that I was startled at first. Why was this man running at me? He stood next to me with the umbrella over my head as I put both boys in the car and he helped me load my groceries. I thanked him several times but I don’t feel like I could ever really thank him enough. With everything I had going on in my life that nice gesture brought some sun into my life. I still remember that to this day. I wish I knew who he was so I could tell him how much I needed something like that at that time of my life. I always cry every time I talk or write about this.
Now that I told my story. Here are some random acts of kindness you can do that don’t cost a thing. Who knows you might just help someone at just the right time:
1. Shovel or snowblow a neighbors sidewalk or driveway for free.
2. Got some free samples in the mail you don’t need? IE: diaper sample, lotion sample, etc. Give it to someone who can use it.
3. Leave a note for a coworker letting them know they’re doing a good job
4. Let someone in front of you in line at the store if they only have a few items or have kids with them
5. Open a door for someone
6. Hold the elevator for someone coming down the hall
7. Have a coupon you don’t need? Leave it with the item on the shelf at the grocery store so someone who needs it can use it.
8. Know that stuff your kids grew out of that you’ve been meaning to donate? This is the week to do it.
9. Leave a random (but meaningful) comment on someone’s facebook wall
10. It’s cold out. Offer your mail carrier or parcel delivery person a hot cup of coffee or cocoa in a disposable cup so they can takeit on the go. If you know about what time they come, have one ready because they’ll probably have to keep moving.
11. Reach something off the shelf for someone at the store.
12. Offer to babysit for a friend or family member free of charge.
13. Call up a friend or relative and tell them you’re thinking about them.
14. Send a random positive text to someone in your contacts.
15. See someone at the hospital, store, walking down the street who looks lost? Offer them directions.
16. If you see a neighbor garbage cans got blown over by the wind, pick them up and put them back into place.
17. Leave a note for your significant other somewhere letting them know, in your own words, that you appreciate them.
18. Used a gift card to pay and only have a couple dollars left on it? Offer the card to the person behind you in line and let them use the rest.
19. Leave a few pennies in the penny tray at the cash register (ok so this one costs a couple cents)
20. Offer to run an errand or help with a few odds and ends around the house for an elderly family member, friend, or neighbor.
I could probably keep going but I thought this was a good start for ideas for random acts of kindness. Have you experienced a random act of kindness? I’d love to hear about it. I did a guest post for Random Acts of Kindness for Motorists too.
