The power of Kindness is immense and hard to stop. And why would you want to stop it? Being thoughtful of others should be the goal of all humans everywhere. Once you start taking the time to reflect on how you can help your fellow human beings (and animals), the opportunities appear all over the place.
For instance: the penny bowl.
We admit that we didn’t give much thought to the penny bowl until we started focusing towards Kindness. Now it has become a regular, instinctive act of kindness for the TR family.
Bluey and TR Dad regularly bicycle to a local small grocer, Jenifer Street Market. Its distance from our house makes it a great destination for us. When we arrive, Bluey usually gets a small candy treat. It costs less than a dollar, so there’s always a little bit of change.
This grocer is on the walk home for many students at the middle school a few blocks away, so many of them stop in to pick up an afterschool treat. A casual comment from the cashier helped TR Dad put two-and-two together. Some students from the school can’t always afford a 25¢ candy. But if there’s enough spare change in the Market’s penny bowl, the cashier will let them use it for a purchase. So now TR Dad puts our change into the bowl each time he shops there.
It’s a simple way to make a kid happy. You’ll probably never get to see them smile about it, but you will know that you have helped someone out in a small, simple way. Next time you see the penny bowl- be a giver. You just might make someone’s day a little brighter.