It was a little thing. In fact it was a little girl…about as big as a minute, as my mother would have said. She was four or five, walking on the street with her father (I presumed) who was busy thumb dancing on his phone. It was windy but mild today, promising rain. A couple of people passed the man and girl in the opposite direction…and a scarf blew off one of them…I saw it get caught by the wind and tossed onto a lawn behind them. Neither noticed. But the little girl did. I saw her stop as her father kept walking and she ran onto the lawn and picked up the scarf. Then she spun around and ran after the couple…shouting “Hey!…Hey!” until they stopped and she gave back the scarf. Her father had turned and started back to get her but stopped when she returned…The couple laughed and waved at the little girl and everybody went on their way. I was standing on my balcony waterproofing a pair of boots…(damn, that spray stinks!) and as I saw the story unfold, a warm glow caught me.
A kindness is what it was and they come in all sizes. Children often do small ones that turn out to be larger than life and lots of adults do huge ones that turn out to be less than that. Never mind…small, medium or large…kindnesses are needed more than ever these days. I’m very much in favour of small kindnesses. I believe they add up and if you do enough of them you’ll wake up one morning and find a merit badge pinned to your pillow.
We are blessed and cursed to live in incredibly interesting times. The past fifty years have been filled with astonishments…terrible things…ghastly things…disasters and great crimes…and also amazing things…good works…great art and music…medical miracles…mind blowing science and technology. We have seen, as well, the stresses and pressures that this phenomenal rate of change places on people and as a society, as a culture, our reactions have shown some ominous trends. Recent political campaigns around the world have revealed a mean negativity and a drive to polarize and divide people.The mass media are too quick to seize opportunities to fan fires…to pry open the rifts…to add to the divisiveness. It appears that racism, sexism, agism, elitism…and many other “isms” are increasing. It’s hard to know if they are or not but it certainly looks that way. In all kinds of situations people are choosing sides instead of trying to understand. Too often people come to the table with opinions firmly fixed and unchangeable…doesn’t make the meal taste better.
It seems to me that the little girl knows how to save the world. Do a kindness today…no…do two or three kindnesses today. And check your pillow for that merit badge.
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