If you were to take the temperature of most of our country right now, it would probably be pretty hot. I offer here one way to bring down the temp, maybe just a wee bit, on the one-to-one basis with a tried-and-true old method.
Performing random acts of kindness is nothing new. This is no less historic and religious than Jesus Christ spreading the word along with loving each other, which is the ultimate kindness.
The phrase and idea of this outreach of kindness was spread in 1982 when writer activist, Anne Herbert, published her article “Practice Random Acts of Kindness and Acts of Senseless Beauty.” The article began a movement across the world and in 1995, it was honored with its own Random Acts of Kindness Day. Examples of such gestures were shared and many were printed to help build the powerful momentum. Multiple books were written to expand this movement.
Back in 1991, a Californian woman noticed the phrase scrawled across a warehouse nearby and shared the image with her husband.
Her husband happened to be a seventh-grade teacher who shared the story with his class. It just happened that in that class was the daughter of a San Francisco Chronicles columnist.
He wrote about Anne Herbert and the concept of random kindness. The article then caught the eye of a little magazine called “The Reader’s Digest.” From there, the idea took wings.
A police officer in New York had just purchased a new pair of boots and socks when he noticed a barefoot homeless man. He stopped and gave him his boots. A tourist happened to see the selfless act and took a picture, which went viral.
A Chicago man announced his pledge to do a different act of random kindness every day for a year. That story spawned similar acts across the United States and then beyond.
In the popular movie “Evan Almighty,” God tells Evan at the end of the movie, “The way to change the world is by doing random acts of kindness.” The stories are endless as are the possibilities.
This leads me to the heart of this story. Many of you may watch CBS Evening News and are familiar with the gifted reporting of Steve Hartman and the inspiring stories shared on his “On the Road” segments. This is one of his stories, and how I became a small piece of it.
A few years ago, Steve told the touching story of two New York women who had been strangers and became close friends due to a random and creative gesture of kindness.
Emily Margolis, a billing clerk at a big health care system, was about to respond to a client’s request for a payment receipt when she became inspired.
Looking at Melody Morrow’s balance due, she saw that there were going to be a lot of envelopes going back and forth. Inspired, Emily decided to go a step above with this receipt. Now Emily could have just done what Melody asked, but Emily likes to make people happy.
She took a blank white envelope and drew some musical notes on it. The following month she drew scales as well. With each new envelope the artwork became more and more creative until finally the artwork covered both the front and the back of the envelope.
Then Emily began to add sequins and to work with gold leaf. As each envelope was sent, they became more detailed and memorable. They were indeed works of art.
When the first envelope arrived in Melody’s mailbox in Manhattan, she was surprised, and it cheered her. As each month presented another work of art, she began to look forward to them, and paying the bill was easier.
They made her so happy, and she was so touched by this amazing gesture from a total stranger that she broke down and called the billing department. Melody asked if there was anyone there who was very artistic. The answering voice called out, “Emily it is for you.”
Thus began a close and loving friendship. After many calls the two decided to meet in person and it was kismet. As the envelope collection grew it became a framed art display for a while at a local New York coffee shop.
One of the customers was so touched by the story that she sent a note to Steve Hartman. Hartman was enchanted by the story, so he reached out and did a segment on their creative friendship a few years ago.
Enter my illness and an amazing church that sent over food and even someone to walk my dog, Yogi. I was overwhelmed with this overflowing of kindness. Especially when I went on to have two more hospital stays. That is three months of kindness.
Enter Kim Fox-Kristensen. While we attended the same church, I really did not know her then. Kim has become such a frequent bringer of random kindness that Yogi knows the sound of her car.
Bringing wonderful food, lemons, honey and tea when I had a chest infection, and meal upon meal, Kim still walks Yogi multiple times a week.
But more than that, she became my friend, sitting and talking to a very lonely woman. On one such visit she asked if I was familiar with CBS news reporter Steve Hartman.
With that question a whole new world was opened to me. Kim sent me the video of Melody and Emily’s story. I was so touched. Kim saw the link to the story on Facebook.
Emily commented on this story and was able to contact her. Kim wrote to Emily. The two, being kindred spirits, began a hearty correspondence, which led to emails and calls. Kim started receiving beautiful envelopes herself. Kim brought me some of these small masterpieces for me to see.
I raved about the artwork but even more about the random kindness behind them. When Kim had first received her envelope masterpiece, she brought it into her elementary school classroom.
Her students were so moved by the story and the envelope that they suggested that they each should design and mail envelopes to her. In return, also touched by this random act of kindness, she sent the classroom a decorated envelope to them.
Imagine all the smiles on those students’ faces. The takeaway was that her students were motivated to perform random acts of kindness themselves.
Kim’s correspondence with Emily grew to the point that when Kim and her husband went to visit their daughter in New York, they included a visit to meet each other. That visit resulted in much singing, laughter, sharing and an opportunity to meet Melody.
Kim recently told me that she and her husband were making the trip again and would see her friends. I asked her to please tell them how much I was touched by their story. I asked her to tell them how closely it resonated with me.
Of course, I told her to tell them how knocked out I was by the envelope artwork.
Last week I was feeling a bit under the weather and was a bit low in spirit as I slowly walked to the mailbox with Yogi. While opening my box, an envelope dropped out.
A huge smile crossed my face when I looked down at a masterpiece of an envelope of me sitting on my sofa. Yogi looked up at me lovingly, while my beloved cat Lola Bunny looked on. A lovely note inside invited me to join them in their circle of kindness.
Now, Kim has heard from Steve’s producer that they will be showing an updated version of the story that will include the students’ envelopes. And the momentum grows! And now, hopefully, the story will continue just as my next column will on kindness.
Hope and love can spread in the wind and create miracles. I hope that this and next week’s column help ignite a bit of Central Valley magic.
I hope you will join me next week when I share some of my personal examples of random acts of kindness, talk about some of the acts of kindness that have been done by service groups in Los Banos while I lived there and share some of the many ways that you can spread some kindness yourself.
Can’t you feel the world getting happier, just in anticipation?
