Kindness in the Air

“You don’t have to be an angel, just be someone who can give.”

~ Patti LaBelle

A woman I know is not a very good traveler – by air, that is.  Flying on a good day makes her nervous.  A bad flight is a problem.  Recently, after a couple of days of daily flights, she was on a rough one.  Thankfully, she was sitting next to a very nice older woman, a neurologist, who talked to her calmly, and guided her through breathing and meditation.

The Kindness of an Ask

“Correction does much, but encouragement does more.”

~ Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

An older woman I know asked me to make a strata – a casserole-type dish – for a special event at church.  Not being much of a cook, I was a bit nervous about her request, but I told her that if she gave me a simple recipe, I would do it.  She sent me a recipe that fortunately did not include too many ingredients.  The day before I needed to produce the strata, she texted me to ask if I had any questions.  No – because at that point I had not even started.  When I finally began to make the dish, I did have questions, but it was too late to call her, so I just did what made the most sense.  The next day, I showed up with my strata, hoping that it would turn out close to what she was expecting.  She oohed and aahed over my dish and told me that mine had turned out better than hers.  Impossible, I know, but she did get me to do something that I did not think I could do.

Kindness and T.H.I.N.K.

“Kind words not only lift our spirits in the moment they are given, but they can linger with us over the years.”

~  Joseph B. Wirthlin

The other day, someone shared with me the concept of T.H.I.N.K.  Before we speak, we should ask ourselves the following about what we are going to share:

T – Is it true?

H – Is it helpful?

I – Is it inspiring? Or will it improve on the silence?

N – Is it necessary?

K – Is it kind?

If we apply this, it definitely cuts down on what we say.  And as I realized recently when I stopped myself from making a gratuitous comment, that might not be a bad thing.

Kindness at the Airport

“I always say that kindness is the greatest beauty you can have.”

~ Andie MacDowell

I recently was making my way through a familiar airport, but I exited the train that takes passengers between terminals at the wrong spot and got a bit turned around.  I asked an airport employee who was pushing an empty wheelchair how to get to where I was going.  “Come with me,” she said and led me back onto the train.  Once we arrived at the main terminal, she walked with me and then pointed me in the right direction.  And along the way, we had a pleasant conversation.

The Kindness of a Smile

“A warm smile is the universal language of kindness.”

~  William Arthur Ward

The other day as I was walking through an airport terminal, a gentleman walking toward me smiled at me.  I smiled back.  And kept smiling.

Late-Night Kindness at the Hotel

“Together we can change the world, just one random act of kindness at a time.”

~ Ron Hall

I recently found myself checking into a hotel after midnight with a couple of colleagues after a very long day of meetings and travel.  One of my colleagues asked the gentleman at the front desk if there was somewhere to get a Diet Coke.  The gentleman said that he would get her one from the employee vending machine – the only place to get one at that hour.  I then asked if the vending machine had water. He said no, but he went to the employee refrigerator and gave me a cold water bottle.

Early Morning Kindness on the Road

“Pour God’s love out of you in pitcher fulls, not thimbles.”

~ Shannon L. Alder

Whenever I travel, I end up writing about kindnesses on the road.  I think the reason that I find them so meaningful is that when we travel alone, we are always with strangers and never at home in the way that we are with family and close friends.  Sometimes those random interactions with strangers give us the connection to others we all need.

As I was boarding a recent flight, a gentleman behind me helped stow my bag in the overhead.  It turned out that he was sitting next to me.  Before the flight took off, I saw him unbuckle his seat belt and wondered what he was doing.  He stood up to help a woman a couple of rows ahead with her luggage.  Not surprisingly, when we landed, this same gentleman pulled my bag out of the overhead and then placed my smaller bag on top of it.  As the passengers were deplaning, I let a boy of about 8 go in front of me.  He turned around with a big smile and thanked me.  Again, I was surprised, but happy to encounter so much kindness before 9 a.m.