Acts of Kindness – Page 14 – make today happy

Act of kindness #5: Appreciating good service

Being kind by writing a thank you message for my lovely waitress:

I’ve just enjoyed a yummy brunch at Bills, thanks to a much appreciated Christmas Gift Card from a thoughtful friend.

My waitress was really lovely. She was kind and friendly and I felt very well looked after.

Having been a waitress in my mid-late teens, I know how hard work it can be. I also know how much a simple thank you from a customer can mean. I can’t bear it when people don’t acknowledge waitstaff or treat them discourteously. And so I always make sure to smile and show my appreciation.

So as well as thanking my waitress personally, I decided to write her a thank you message on one of my kindness cards.

Thankfully, I always carry a blank kindness card or two in my bag. I wrote a message and propped it up on my table as I left so she would discover it when she was preparing the table for the next (hopefully appreciative) customer.

Act of kindness #3: Sisterly love

Being kind by inviting my sister to join me for a film preview:

As part of my 100 Acts of Kindness I vowed to include kindness acts that I do for people I know as well as strangers.

These are the kind of acts that we all do on a regular basis without really thinking about, and we usually don’t pat ourselves on the back for.

But I strongly feel we should honour and celebrate all kinds of kindness, and while this one feels a bit uncomfortable to write, here we go…

A couple of days ago, I was excited to be offered free preview tickets to see the new Eddie The Eagle film. I was delighted to see that it was a pre-lunchtime screening as mornings are the better time with my limited energy levels, which speed quickly downhill after lunch.

I usually take mum with me as my plus one, but knowing that my sister could do with a bit of cheering up, I decided to offer her my plus one ticket.

As a busy mum of two boys, aged 7 and 3, my sister doesn’t really get much time to herself – something I’m sure lots of mums identify with. She works three days a week and the other days are spent looking after my nephews, so I thought it would be brilliant to be able to offer her a morning away from the madhouse!

She was keen, but unfortunately the time conflicted with her hubby leaving to play in a football match. It was only a frustratingly short 20 minute gap, but obviously the boys can’t be left on their own in the house!

So she sadly had to decline my invite.

Thankfully our very kind mum came to the rescue and offered to look after the boys, and cover the short gap between their daddy going out and mummy coming home.

Hooray for our fabulous mum ♡

As the cinema is only a short drive from home and is manageable for me with the CFS condition, I offered to drive in order to give my sis a break from driving.

It was really nice to see her enjoying the luscious countryside views that she drives frequently past on her way to work but is unable to properly enjoy as she has to concentrate on the road.

Thankfully we both really enjoyed the film – we laughed, we cried, we gasped – and I think it’s safe to say that we both appreciated our rare 1-2-1 sister time together ☺︎

I’m so happy that I could share my good fortune of the free cinema tickets with my little sis, and for having such a lovely, kind and thoughtful mum to help make it happen.

Act of kindness #4: Flowers for mum

Being kind by buying my mum a bunch of flowers:

My lovely mum is going through a difficult time at the moment.

And as you’ll know, it’s really hard to see someone you love upset.

So as well as keeping her in a constant supply of heartfelt hugs, I bought her this bunch of bright cheery flowers to lift her spirits a little and to remind her how much she is loved and treasured.

Act of kindness #2: Warming messages

Being kind by putting up kindness messages around town:

On this chilly foggy morning, I needed to visit my favourite health food shop to pick up a few essentials and thought I’d sprinkle a little kindness around in the hope of bringing a warm sunny smile to the early morning shoppers.

Armed with some of my kindness cards upon which I’d written my favourite message: “You are AMAZING – if you forget that, please read this again” and a blob of Blu-Tack, my lovely mum and I ventured into the town centre.

Here’s where I stuck my kindness cards:

Kindness Card #1: The car park’s Give Way sign

Kindness Card #2: The pillar facing the main doors of supermarket

Kindness Card #3: A lovely ornate lamppost between the supermarket and the high street

Kindness Card #4: Inside a cafe’s menu

Kindness Card #5: Another ornate lamppost on the busy high street

Kindness Card #6: The bark of a tree in the middle of the town’s square

Kindness Card #7: And perhaps my favourite place of all-time, on the lapel of the brilliant ‘Beeman’ sculpture

If you spotted one of my kindness messages this morning, I’d love to hear if it made you smile in the comments below…

Act of kindness #1: Spreading a little kindness on Facebook

Being kind by starting a kindness community on Facebook:

As part of my continuing kindness mission, I’ve set up a community page on Facebook called ‘Spreading a little kindness’.

~ ‘Spreading a little kindness’ is a place where we can share kindness stories and experiences, whether it’s a kindness act we have done, or an act of kindness we have received.

~ ‘Spreading a little kindness’ is a place we can celebrate:
1. Being kind to people we know: these are the kind acts we do for friends, family, and folks we already know. These are the acts we all do without really thinking about them and it’s important to honour the kindness already within us and celebrate it.
2. Being kind to strangers: these are the acts of kindness we do whether they’re anonymous or face-to-face for people we don’t know. And,
3. Being kind to ourselves: As we can be sometimes be too hard on ourselves – I know I am – being kind to ourselves is really important for our own wellbeing and we will be celebrating this too.

~ ‘Spreading a little kindness’ is a place where we can share ideas and to help inspire and motivate each other to keep spreading kindness.

~ And ‘Spreading a little kindness’ is a place where every ‘like’ or ‘share’ generated from this page, creates an incredible ripple effect of kindness.

I truly believe we can make the world a better place, one kindness act at a time.

I’d really love to see you and your friends there and I’m looking forward to spreading a little kindness with you…

☆♡☆

Day 99: My kind Valentine

Being kind by leaving love-filled goodie bags on car windscreens in the hospital car park:

Happy Valentine’s Day! And Happy International Random Act of Kindness Week!

So why not combine the two, me thinks!!

How about some Valentine’s Day Kindness Bags filled with love-themed goodies?

And being joined by my helpful nephew Callum, I have all the ingredients for the sweetest Valentine’s Day EVER!!

I’ve been planning this ever since my Random Act of Christmas Kindness. One of my favourite kindness acts so far, I loved choosing what to put inside my festive goodie bags and it gave me such pleasure leaving them on car windscreens at my doctor’s surgery.

But most of all I was incredibly moved by a response I received from a lovely lady who received one of these bags (see the comments section if you’d like to read it).

So the day is finally here, hooray!.

And I’m over-the-moon that my seven-year-old nephew Callum wants to help me. I love what a big heart he has and how his teacher is always commenting on how kind and helpful he is.

So earlier this morning we spread our loot across my bed, and had fun packing our 20 kindness goodie bags.

Into each clear bag, we popped: a red foil-wrapped chocolate heart, a mini packet of Love Heart sweeties, a mini chocolate bar, a highlighter pen, some heart stickers, a handful of heart-shaped jewels, and a feather or two.

We wrote kindness messages on my Kindness Cards. Callum carefully writing: You are amazing, and adding his name and age on a few. So sweet. And we also included a ‘You Are Loved’ card I’d made using one of my favourite nature photos I took last year, with a little explanation about our Random Act of Kindness on the reverse.

Excited and ready for action, we drove down to the City Hospital and parked up.

Although it was freezing, our hearts were warmed as together we placed our kindness bags on the car windscreens.

We even had the chance to give someone one of our kindness bags face-to-face: we spotted a lady heading into the hospital and ran across to hand-deliver a goodie bag. She seemed really happy to receive it.

We hope that when the owner/s returned to their cars after their appointment or visit or work-shift, they will be surprised.

And we really hope our little act of kindness will make a few people smile and feel happy, especially on this love-filled day.

Last week, I told the Nottingham Post about our little Valentine’s adventure, and we were interviewed and snapped by our city’s newspaper while in the midst of our good deed. Once the feature goes out, I will post the link here:

We then celebrated with a trip to our local Costa for a well-deserved sugar-loaded treat!

What really warms my heart is that Callum wants to take a kindness goodie bag with him into school next week for his ‘show and tell’. My heart is so happy to think that this small act of kindness may help inspire this younger generation to continue the ripple effect of kindness.

What a brilliant way to celebrate the start of International Random Act of Kindness Week!

Now back home, I’m shaking with exhaustion and about to switch-off and have a long soak in a yummy Epsom salt bath.

So with this in mind, my happy for today is being kind by leaving love-filled goodie bags on car windscreens in the hospital car park.

ps if you have received one of our Valentine’s Day Kindness Goodie Bags, we’d really LOVE to hear from you in the comments below. If you’d prefer me not to publish your comment on the blog, please let me know.

Day 95: Kindness trail

Being kind by leaving kindness messages on windows and mirrors around the city:

Time for another Random Act of Kindness me thinks.

I wrote out a kindness message on the back of my new Kindness Cards with the intention of sprinkling some magical kindness around my city on this freezing cold January Tuesday.

The message was simple and true of ALL of us: You are beautiful ~ inside and out.

I set off for my Artist’s Date in the city of brunch and a movie, clutching my Kindness Cards and blu-tack ready for action.

As I was a little short of time and am still slowly building up my energy levels, I decided to leave a trail of Kindness Cards in my wake.

First up was the window of my local connect bus:

Followed by the window of my tram which took me into the city:

After eating a delicious brunch in my favourite café, I nipped to the bathroom to pop a card on the mirror:

As I walked through the shopping centre, I stuck a couple on the mirrors in the main public toilets:

After arriving at the cinema and before my screening, I popped one on the bathroom mirror:

And after seeing my film, I stuck my last card to the mirror in the main bathroom.

And that’s it. My job as Kindness Fairy for today is done! I really hope I’ve made at least one person smile today after seeing one of my kindness messages.

So with this in mind, my happy for today is being kind by leaving kindness messages on windows and mirrors around the city

ps if you happened to see one of my kindness messages, thank you so much for visiting my blog! I’d love to hear from you in the comments below…

Day 87: You’ve been RACK’ed!

Being kind by leaving festive goodie bags on car windscreens at the doctors’ surgery:

I’m so excited about this act of kindness. I’ve been thinking about it for a couple of weeks, but with my recent big CFS relapse have had to put it on hold.

But as I start to feel a little better, I made it to the shops a couple of days ago to buy some treats to make some festive goodie bags; and I was delighted to have enough to make 24 bags!

Alongside a few sweet treats, I added a party popper, a festive feather and a Christmas bauble.

I also included one of my brand new Kindness Cards with the message: You are AMAZING (if you forget that, please read this again).

I’ve also made a ‘you’ve been RACK’ed’ card which reads: You have been RACK’ed. You have been chosen to receive this small gift through a Random Act of Christmas Kindness. May your day be merry and bright Xxx

So today I nipped out to pop a goodie bag onto the windscreen of the cars parked in my local doctors’ surgery car park. I really hope that it will be a nice surprise for those who’ve just been to see one of the doctor’s about a health issue.

A dapper gentleman dressed in a smart suit was just returning to his car as I was about to put a goodie bag on his windscreen, so I got the chance to give it to him face-to-face instead. It was really heartwarming and rewarding to see his reaction to this little act of kindness: he gave me a huge smile as he said thank you. ♡

With the rest of the goodie bags, I hope to feel well enough to head into the city one day next week and will either hand them out or will hide them for people to find. If not, I’ll work something out.

So with this in mind, my happy for today is being kind by leaving festive goodie bags on car windscreens at the doctors’ surgery.

ps if you received one of my festive goodie bags, I’d love to hear from you in the comments below…

Day 84: BBC Radio Nottingham

Being kind by handing out chocolate bars, face-to-face:

I did something new today: I handed out chocolate bars to strangers.

Face-to-face!

EEEK!!

And it felt really good.

My confidence is obviously growing! OK, it helped that I wasn’t alone. My lovely mum was with me, and also the lovely Sarah Julian a presenter from BBC Radio Nottingham.

I’d been invited into the studio to talk about my kindness acts in a pre-recorded interview, and then go out to perform some kindness acts with the presenter.

I was pretty nervous going into the studio, but focused on my mission: to spread the kindness message. Sarah and I had a great chat, and although it was really cringey to hear myself on the radio the next day, I’m happy that I didn’t make a complete fool of myself (well, I hope I didn’t anyway!).

And it was so much fun going out with Sarah to do the kindness acts.

We drove to the nearby retail park, which houses one of my fave shops: Hobbycraft – I asked mum and Sarah to keep in me out of there, by force if necessary!

My mission was to hand out some chocolate bars to busy shoppers, each with one of my kindness cards attached with the message: You are AMAZING. If you forget that, please read this again.

After I’d approached the unsuspecting shoppers, Sarah asked them a few questions about the experience. A couple of people ran away – Sarah kindly pointing out it was probably due to the big fluffy microphone she was holding – most were surprised, and everyone smiled.

WooHooo!

It was brilliant to see Sarah join in and hand out a couple of choccie bars too. And as we drove away in high spirits, I was happy to hear she’d had fun too. I can honestly say that from my experience, the giver benefits as much as the receiver.

Exhausted but happy, I got back home to find this lovely message on my blog:

“My partner and I met you today whilst you were with BBC Radio Nottingham at the retail park. We love what you’re doing and think you’re a fantastic lady!!! We bought you a little gift as a thank you for making us smile, when we came out of the shop you were gone! Is there any way we can get it to you? Xxx”

WOW.

This is what it’s all about: making someone smile.

I am so touched that this lovely couple made the effort to get in touch. And that they were kind enough to want to pay it forward is the icing on the cake, with the cherry on top!

So with this in mind, my happy for today is being kind by handing out bars of chocolate, face-to-face!

ps if you fancy a listen….

Here’s the studio interview with BBC Radio Nottingham:

Here’s the outside broadcast by BBC Radio Nottingham:

Day 83: Kindness Advent Calendar (2015)

Being kind by creating an Acts of Kindness Advent Calendar so everyone can take part and spread some festive kindness:

Today I’ve put the finishing touches to my Acts of Kindness Advent Calendar and I’m thrilled to be able to share it with you.

I was inspired by a lovely friend forwarding me a fab one for children a couple of days ago, and I thought it’d be great to create one for us grown ups.

So I set to work and this is the result:

To download your copy, please click on this link: Acts-of-Kindness-Advent-Calendar-by-maketodayhappy.co_.uk_.pdf (51340 downloads)

And I’d like to invite lovely you and yours to join me in doing a kindness act every day for the 25 days leading up to Christmas.

It works just like a normal advent calendar but instead of receiving, we are giving.

How cool is that!

Now, I know December is an extra busy month for most of us, and we can find ourselves rushing around trying to get everything ready in time for the Christmas holidays.

So, I’ve tried to make each kindness act:

Quick: most days it will just take a few seconds, and a couple may take a few minutes,
Easy: they don’t really take too much effort or energy to do at all, and
Cheap: well, actually most of them don’t cost a thing, and a couple cost the price of a cup of coffee or chocolate bar in the vending machine.

This way, anyone and everyone can take part.

You may want to mix it up and swap the acts around, or even make up your own kindness acts. And don’t worry if you can’t do an act of kindness every single day, sometimes it’s just not possible as I know too well with the nature of my CFS flare ups.

But even if every one of us manages to do just one kindness act on one day – imagine how amazing that would be!

It’s such a wonderful way to spread some festive cheer and boost our own spirits at the same time.

But I really need your help.

Please help me spread the word by encouraging family, friends and colleagues to take part in this kindness extravaganza as we countdown to Christmas.

And I’d be ever so grateful if you could share this blog post with others – simply click on one of the ‘share’ buttons below, or share it however works best for you – and let’s get the kindness ripple effect reaching out far and wide over the festive season.

And most of all, remember to have fun and enjoy creating a kindness ripple effect in your community.

Thank you so very much.

xxXxx

p.s. I’d love to hear about your kindness experiences in the comments below…

To download your free copy of the Acts of Kindness Advent Calendar, please click on this link: Acts-of-Kindness-Advent-Calendar-by-maketodayhappy.co_.uk_.pdf (51340 downloads)

p.p.s. Thanks to EVERYONE who’s shared, forwarded on and/or downloaded my Acts of Kindness Advent Calendar so far – you are AMAZING! I’m so excited by how so many lovely folk are joining me in spreading the kindness message this festive season, including the Nottingham Post – THANK YOU!