Kindness - One Day Is Not Enough

Yesterday was World Kindness Day. And I missed it. Not that I wasn't kind  — in my brief interactions with the outside world yesterday, I don't think I faltered. I hope not.

But since I've written a lot about kindness in this column, I don't like to miss an opportunity to address it.

Several thoughts sprang to mind when a fresh post on the Facebook page Over 50 & Irresistible reminded everyone about World Kindness Day.

-   That we need to be reminded with an official day

but you know, we're so over-stimulated and over-informed we need reminders about everything, including to breathe, so I guess it's not so bad.

-   That the official day is far apart from the official week, which is in February.
which I guess is also good because it spreads around the reminders. Maybe we need a seasonal kindness celebration.

-   If it were every day it would lose its impact.
but how do we become more conscious of it's presence on an ongoing basis? Do we need a ribbon? Or are we ribboned out?

I've talked about

• What to do when unexpected kindness comes your way.
• Specific measures you can take to be kind.
• Kindness expressed through purchase power
• And expressing kindness through physical sincerity
• Even just through manners, which is often the same thing.

I remember reading an article that said the economic downturn would make us treat each other better. Do you think that's true?

Cintra Wilson mentioned that we're all still in denial about the situation. So by extension, perhaps our collective behavior hasn't changed ... yet.

World Kindness Day began in 1998 as an extension of the 35th anniversary of the Small Kindness Movement of Japan, which had expanded into the World Kindness Movement.

The people on Over 50 & Irresistible seem incredibly kind, as well as a wonderful group of women I've "met" on Facebook, such as author Amy Ferris, whose book Marrying George Clooney: Confessions from a Midlife Crisis has been turned into a play.

Another member posted this variation of a quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson:

What you do speaks so loudly that I cannot hear what you say."

If World Kindness Day every day is overkill, so to speak, maybe sayings like that on the fridge, desk, or car will remind us. Other aspects to ponder:

• unkindness is often a call for help
• cynicism is really fear
• does fear quash kindness or can kindness trump fear?

I remember reading in Real Simple last year: Mean doesn't go away. Some people get better looking with age; some don't. Some people soften; some toughen up. Mean streaks tend not to disappear. A person who demeans and belittles you and speaks of you with contempt to others is probably going to be that way for years. The first time it happens, take note. The second time, take your coat and go.

The World Kindness Day site offers suggestions for kids, but what about adults? There is a such thing as adult bullying. But I do believe in the ripple effect.

If your ripples are having no effect, you might need to find another pond ...Or splash harder.

Thank you for reading. Have a kind day.

Responding in kind:
Mean Girls No More
Let a Smile Be Your Style
Dare to be Daring