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Kindness. It's so simple. You probably learned about it very early in life and were taught to practice it often in your early school years. Somewhere along the path of life this life lesson was pushed deeper into the brain's storage unit as we learned about algebra, logic, and British literature. Free hours after school involved a part-time job, instant messaging, and desperately trying to be cool. Well kindness is not just for kindergartners. As a grown-up (mostly), being shown and showing kindness can be even more powerful.
This past Thursday, my husband and I were having an awful day. All morning we were fighting with each other. What about? To be honest I don't even remember the specifics . By mid-afternoon we were just plain tired and crabby. We decided to eat lunch at the Byerly's food court and then figure out what to do next. As we paid for our meals, the cashier struck up a conversation and commented that seeing us together made her day. She explained that she had been married for thirty years and her husband was always so busy working that they never ran errands or got to eat a lazy lunch together. Her husband died a few years ago and she encouraged us to cherish any time that we got to spend together. She said that seeing the love we had for each other made her heart happy (such a cute way to say it) and she felt encouraged for the next generation of marriages that we would focus less on money and more on quality time spent together.
Wow! Talk about feeling like a fraud. Here we were, crabby, and going out to get lunch in a tired act of defeat. To hear those kind words and encouragement changed both our moods and the course of our day. Over lunch we actually enjoyed each others company and talked about how blessed we were to be able to spend time together in the middle of a busy week. Because of those kind words, we rented a Redbox dvd as we left Byery's and had a movie evening in bed. The course of the day changed because of a strangers kindness. It was the reality check we needed to focus on what was important.
Today, be kind. Be loving. Encourage those you come in contact with, especially in the daily mundane places like a grocery store.
