More on Kindness and Surprise

"The best way to do ourselves good is to be doing good to others; the best way to gather is to scatter."
―Thomas Brooks

In a recent post, I wondered why we are so surprised at kindness.  One of the Kindness Muses wrote to me and said:  " Like you, I don't know the answer of why people are surprised -- my own reaction is that it's unexpected and delightful to be surprised, and that I don't feel I'm worthy of it. "

When she said the part about not feeling "worthy" of the kindness, that resonated with me because frequently that is how I feel -- that I am getting more than I should expect, which is surprising.  My friend also shared a link to the transcript of a lecture by Dale Ahlquist, president of the American Chesterton Society, http://www.chesterton.org/discover-chesterton/chesterton-101/lecture-78/.  Ahlquist writes about a play by G.K. Chesterton, The Surprise, and says, "[W]e can increase the good we do for others by adding the element of surprise.  It is a way of giving more than what people expect."

And perhaps that is at the heart of our being surprised when someone is kind.  Not only do we not expect the kindness, but we also somehow think that it is more than we deserve.