The Kindness Box

[FineLinen]

“One of the most important things you can do on this earth is to let people know they are not alone.” -Shannon L. Alder

“There is no small act of kindness. Every compassionate act makes large the world.” - Mary Anne Radmacher

“Withhold a smile only when the smile can hurt someone. Otherwise, let it bloom forth in a riot.” - Vera Nazarian

 

[Geoff-Allen]

“I feel your pain.” That phrase took on a whole new meaning when scientists first were able to visualize how the brain processes someone else’s suffering. In a landmark paper in Science in 2004, Tania Singer and colleagues showed that some pain-sensitive parts of the brain are activated when we empathize with others who are in pain.

The researchers used fMRI to measure the neural responses of participants both when they experienced pain and when their loved one, present in the same room, experienced pain. They found that empathy activates the pain-related parts of the neural network associated with emotions but not sensorial experiences.

Nearly a decade after this work, researchers continue to learn more about empathy, including social factors that influence it, such as whether a person is part of your group or an outsider. They also have discovered a range of connections between empathy and various other emotions and senses.

For the full-article click below -

Feeling Other’s Pain: Transforming Empathy into Compassion

All the best!

 

[Geoff-Allen]

When Sydney Holmes set out to perform 22 random acts of kindness on her 22nd birthday she didn’t know that number would jump to the hundreds and span continents. Last Wednesday, the birthday girl created an event on Facebook inviting her friends to join her in being kind to strangers.

“I thought it was wonderful,” said Holmes’s 22-year-old University of Windsor schoolmate, Meghan Hines. “Who would do that for their birthday? Who would send out a note on Facebook instead of getting something or having a party for them wanting good to be done on to others. It’s really touching.” More than 300 people signed up for the event and close to 100 posted their random act of kindness.

From buying coffee for the person behind in line, to visiting sick children in hospital or simply writing old acquaintances, hundreds took part in Holmes’s initiative. “It was so fulfilling. I cried all day – good tears,” said Holmes, who spent the day reading posts about people donating groceries, raking a stranger’s leaves and baking post exam cookies for students, while checking off her own list of 22 deeds.

Comes from that earlier site -

22 Random Acts of Kindness\

Cheers!

 

[Geoff-Allen]

As parents we live in a world where we have to teach our kids to be untrusting of strangers. Simple acts of kindness get lost in translation as we search for balance between being safe and reaching out to help others.

Comes from this blog -

A Simple act of Kindness in an Otherwise Crazy World Becomes a Teaching Moment

Enjoy your day!

 

[Geoff-Allen]

Kind over matter looks an interestin site -

Kind Over Matter - Life gets better when you're kind to yourself

May post a couple of their articles after I have read through them

Enjoy your day.

 

[Geoff-Allen]

Kindness for people less fortunate -

This one was written mainly for Christmas but you can do them any day -

1. Invite an elderly or lonely neighbour for Christmas lunch
2. Wrap an extra gift and pop it into the nearest homeless shelter
3. Buy an extra bag of Christmas treats and take it to a local shelter
4. Send a card to a friend you’ve not spoken to in forever
5. Bake extra Christmas treats and give them to a struggling mum in your community
6. Show kids the spirit of giving by packing up some toys to donate
7. Let your child lead the way in buying a gift for a less fortunate kid
8. Talk to your child about giving a donation in lieu of receiving a gift
9. Donate a micro-loan to a woman in another country to help her get on her feet
10. Take a hamper of chocolates and toys to your local children’s hospital

More - dozens more - at this page -

116 Random Acts of Kindness You Can Do This Christmas or Every Day!

All the best!

 

[Geoff-Allen]

Kindness award -

Developing a kindness habit at an early age can have a profound impact on happiness and success as we all know. Why not reward kind behavior in our schools? What would our city be like if every school regarded kindness as important as any other aspect of education? If we are unwilling to teach and reward kind behavior in our schools, children will not be able to understand the importance of kindness. Today, we challenge all educational institutions in our community to follow our program of giving out kindness awards as one of their student recognitions.

Kindness Awards | Student Recognitions Milwaukee | Love Kindness

Enjoy your day!

 

[FineLinen]

“This is what kindness does... each little thing we do goes out, like a ripple, into the world.” ― Jacqueline Woodson

“Life is short and we have never too much time for gladdening the hearts of those who are traveling the dark journey with us. Oh, be swift to love, make haste to be kind.” - Henri-Frédéric Amiel

 

[FineLinen]

“Perhaps the most 'spiritual' thing any of us can do is simply to look through our own eyes, see with eyes of wholeness, and act with integrity and kindness.” - Jon Kabat-Zinn

“Compassion is a lifetime business. You can't say something like, "I will have compassion on Monday, Thursdays and Fridays only. But for the rest, I will be cruel". That is hypocrisy.” - Israelmore Ayivor

“With one kind gesture you can change a life. One person at a time you can change the world. One day at a time we can change everything.” - Steve Maraboli

 

[Geoff-Allen]

Be kind to yourself too -

Watch your self critic – Is your inner voice a harsh task master? Do you regularly berate yourself for failing in some way? You are only a sensitive and vulnerable human being, just like the rest of us are, so please be gentle with yourself as much as you can. Maybe even begin to offer yourself some praise to give a little balance to any ongoing, negative inner dialogue?

40 Ways to Practice Self-Kindness

Cheers!

 

[FineLinen]

“All the beautiful sentiments in the world weigh less than a single lovely action.”-- James Russell Lowell

 

[Geoff-Allen]

Many similar sentiments & authors here -

TOP 25 KINDNESS QUOTES (of 1000) | A-Z Quotes

Enjoy!

 

[Geoff-Allen]

 

[Geoff-Allen]

 

[Geoff-Allen]

 

[Geoff-Allen]

Happiness pledge - does mention kind thoughts -

I pledge to fill my thoughts with gratitude and kindness,

To persevere and overcome with dignity and elegance,

To live in the moment, learn from the past and plan for the future,

To broaden my mind, strengthen my character and deepen my spirituality,

To see the best in others and in myself,

To laugh and play and bless and serve.

For the full pledge & loads more - click below -

The Happiness Pledge

 

[Geoff-Allen]

Just found this interestin site -

I am borrowing this from another blogger, Meg Evans, because I absolutely love the idea:

The Random Kindness Blog Tour is designed to shine the spotlight on blogs whose authors contribute to happiness in the world by maintaining a consistent positive focus. Such authors may write about random acts of kindness, for example, or offer self-help advice for cultivating a more positive outlook. Participation in the Tour consists of the following:

1. For an entire year, visit a different blog every day that has a positive focus;
2. Post a kind comment on each one, telling the author why you enjoyed it; and
3. Create a Random Kindness Blog Tour page on your own blog that lists each positive site you visit, with a brief description and link. This will help others to find positive blogs.

I am going to follow along with her idea and continuously update every day in 2014 as I visit new blogs. As Meg wrote, “Discovering them is part of the fun! I hope you’ll enjoy them too.”

For the full list of kindness blogs - click below -

Random Kindness Tour

All the best!

 

[Geoff-Allen]

Plus more if you search Youtube - kindness cartooons ...

Enjoy!

 

[FineLinen]

“Sometimes those who give the most are the ones with the least to spare.” - Mike McIntyre

“If you've ever been homesick, or felt exiled from all the things and people that once defined you, you'll know how important welcoming words and friendly smiles can be.” - Stephen King

“Don't wish...DO! Don't try...BE! Don't think...KNOW! And above all: Bless a stranger with a small, yet powerful, random act of kindness. You feel me?” - T.F. Hodge


It’s Little Things that Make a Big Difference.

There was a man taking a morning walk at the beach. He saw that along with the morning tide came hundreds of starfish and when the tide receded, they were left behind and with the morning sun rays, they would die. The tide was fresh and the starfish were alive. The man took a few steps, picked one and threw it into the water. He did that repeatedly. Right behind him there was another person who couldn’t understand what this man was doing. He caught up with him and asked, “What are you doing? There are hundreds of starfish. How many can you help? What difference does it make?” This man did not reply, took two more steps, picked up another one, threw it into the water, and said, “It makes a difference to this one.”

What difference are we making? Big or small, it does not matter. If everyone made a small difference, we’d end up with a big difference, wouldn’t we?

 

[Geoff-Allen]

“Sometimes those who give the most are the ones with the least to spare.” - Mike McIntyre

“If you've ever been homesick, or felt exiled from all the things and people that once defined you, you'll know how important welcoming words and friendly smiles can be.” - Stephen King

“Don't wish...DO! Don't try...BE! Don't think...KNOW! And above all: Bless a stranger with a small, yet powerful, random act of kindness. You feel me?” - T.F. Hodge


It’s Little Things that Make a Big Difference.

There was a man taking a morning walk at the beach. He saw that along with the morning tide came hundreds of starfish and when the tide receded, they were left behind and with the morning sun rays, they would die. The tide was fresh and the starfish were alive. The man took a few steps, picked one and threw it into the water. He did that repeatedly. Right behind him there was another person who couldn’t understand what this man was doing. He caught up with him and asked, “What are you doing? There are hundreds of starfish. How many can you help? What difference does it make?” This man did not reply, took two more steps, picked up another one, threw it into the water, and said, “It makes a difference to this one.”

What difference are we making? Big or small, it does not matter. If everyone made a small difference, we’d end up with a big difference, wouldn’t we?

Thanks for all your recent posts. I enjoy reading them and then acting on them. If we all were a little kinder in our thoughts & words & deeds it would make this planet a better place to inhabit.

All the best!