The Kindness of Seeing with Your Heart

"Empathy is about standing in someone else's shoes, feeling with his or her heart, seeing with his or her eyes.  Not only is empathy hard to outsource and automate, but it makes the world a better place."
~ Daniel H. Pink

When I pulled into the parking garage of our building, I noticed a car parked in my space.  As I drove up, an older gentleman was pulling out of the spot.  He rolled down his window and said he was sorry.  In a quiet voice, my nine-year-old son said, "I feel sorry for that man."  I asked him why.  "He had sadness in his voice."

The Kindness of an Alert

"What this world needs is a new kind of army — the army of the kind."
~ Cleveland Amory

I received a very thoughtful text from a mom friend this week letting me know that a group of my daughter's classmates were going to order lunch at school from a local sub shop, and she wanted to make sure that my daughter and I knew about it, so that my daughter would have money and be able to participate.  It's the not-so-little things that make you appreciate certain people.

The Kindness of the Mommy Village

"Obviously, you would give your life for your children, or give them the last biscuit on the plate.  But to me, the trick in life is to take that sense of generosity between kin, make it apply to the extended family and to your neighbour, your village and beyond."
~ Tom Stoppard

First week of school.  Back to the morning routine.  Traffic is worse than ever.  Your daughter has PE tomorrow and her PE shorts are nowhere to be found.  What is a working mother to do?  Thanks to your mommy village -- one mom lends you a pair of her daughter's shorts, and another mother agrees to go to the very inconveniently located uniform store to buy your daughter a pair.  One of my dearest mom friends texted me her tale of woe today and how her village came to the rescue. 

The Kindness of an Apology

"More people should apologize, and more people should accept apologies when sincerely made."
~ Greg LeMond

Recently, I met with the district manager of a store with which I have had a difficult situation -- a large purchase I made did not work out the way it was supposed to.  After several months of incomprehensible delays and no resolution, the gentleman came to visit me.  He said he was sorry.  I told him the apology was very important to me -- even though I can't quite explain why.  Maybe, it is having someone acknowledge what has happened or how it has impacted me...  I don't know.  But I did tell the manager that when he does training with his staff, he should let them know how important that apology is. 

The Kindness of Yes

"I thank you God for this most amazing day, for the leaping greenly spirits of trees, and for the blue dream of sky and for everything which is natural, which is infinite, which is yes."
~ e. e. cummings

The other day, I asked my steadfast friend if she would be at the school our daughters attend at the time that my daughter would be dismissed from her orientation.  Although her daughter is in a different grade, their schedules that day would overlap.  Yes, my friend said, and so I asked her if she could pick up my daughter.  In a subsequent conversation that day, my friend mentioned that her daughter was with a friend.  "So, you only went to school to pick up my daughter?" I asked her.  "Well...," she began, and went on to tell me that she had wanted to pay for the yearbook, but the bottom line is that she only went to the school to pick up my daughter.

Sibling Kindness

"If you want to do really important things in life and big things in life, you can't do anything by yourself.  And your best teams are your friends and your siblings."
~ Deepak Chopra

The weekend before the first day of school is fraught with excitement, doubt and last-minute errands.  Sometimes, parents don't manage to get it all done or to even realize -- until it is too late -- that there is just one more thing...  So was the case with an elementary school boy we know.  His parents did not realize that they needed to replace his lunch bag, which had suffered a nasty gash at some point during the last school year.  With no time to buy a replacement, his just slightly older sister took matters into her own hands.  She found her mother's sewing kit and sewed the gash right up.  Nothing like a last-minute sibling assist to get you ready for the first day of school.

Kindness in a Treat Bag

"Goodness is about character -- integrity, honesty, kindness, generosity, moral courage, and the like.  More than anything else, it is about how we treat other people."
~ Dennis Prager

We have friends from out of town who also have a home in our community.  Recently, they were here for a couple of weeks.  The morning after they left, we found a bag of treats at our door.  They left us cookies and fruit along with a very thoughtful note -- just one more expression of their kindness and friendship.  It is truly impossible to think of these friends and not smile.