It is not genius, nor glory, nor love that reflects the greatness of the human soul; it is kindness.
Henri-Dominique Lacordaire
We are all struck with tragedies in our life, we all face difficulties – but there is something that brings us together in time of national or international disasters. Something that makes us come out of our shell. Our worries become minimal, compared to the mass of pain being endured by so many others. This spirit of feeling for each other is definitely something we should promote, something we should be proud of!
We tend to create a spontaneous altruistic chain of kindness which can seriously never end. As Geshe Kelsang Gyatso (a Buddhist monk) once said: everything we acheive and every outcome in our life is due to someone else’s kindness. Isn’t it beautiful to see things in this light?
We notice it every day. Even the little things make a difference. This morning I was allowed exit from the side road I had arrived to (on usual days, it takes me ages!). When I saw that someone was having no access at the roundabout ahead, I gave way. The amazing thing about it? The person I gave way to gave way to someone coming out of the driveway! Coincidence? I think not! This is the beauty of kindness – its like a summer breeze, you don’t see it, but its effects are apparent everywhere!
Kindness is contagious, science has proved it! A study in a donor kidney clinic proved that when an anonymous donor entered the clinic to donate a kidney, they spurred a number of relatives of the recipient to themselves go and donate anonymously! The impact of human kindness is that it is one of those situations in life that is win-win. Kindness makes other people happy, and we feel happy for doing something good.
In the aftermath of Sandy Hook, the tragedy hit us all. We cannot take the image of those 20 children out of our mind, as we cannot erase the memory of the teacher who died saving her classroom children. Her kindness inspires us. In honour of those children, a campaign on Twitter is asking for Random Acts of Kindness #26Acts. Isn’t that a touching and fitting idea? What better way to honour the memory of those children than by saving someone else’s.
Roberta Rizzo