World Kindness Day

According to Wikipedia, today, November 13 is World Kindness Day.  It was introduced in 1998 by the World Kindness Movement, a coalition of nations kindness NGOs. It is observed in many countries, including Canada, Japan, Australia, Nigeria and United Arab Emirates. In 2009, Singapore observed the day for the first time. In the UK it is fronted by Louie Burfitt-Dons who co-founded Kindness Day UK.  Her aim was to highlight good deeds done across the country. Mark Twain summarized kindness when he said it is "the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see".  Driven by the World Kindness Movement, the day involves people showing that we can think about more than ourselves and make the world a better place because of it.

Everyone has a different idea of kindness..  Helping an elderly person cross the road, giving someone a compliment, volunteering at a local children's charity, or distributing baked goodies in your workplace - it all counts.  We can make the world better by being kind to the people around us.  It is so simple yet so true.

So, whether you hold your tongue and don't voice mean thoughts or do something proactive to be kind to others, you can play your part in the day.  For half a minute on 13th November, you are asked to contemplate kindness and selfless acts that have had a lasting impact on you.  Nothing huge, or shouting it from the rooftops – it's a gesture as gentle as the notion itself.

Remember what Wordsworth said; "the best bits of a man's life are the simple, random acts of kindness and love". 

So how will you show someone somewhere an act of kindness today.  Not just today, but think about it every day.