You, over there sitting up in bed. What is kindness to you? Hmm? Yes I am talking to you; yes I would like an answer. Whisper it into the universe so I can hear. How about you sir – over there sitting on the couch. What is kindness to you? What about the rest of you? The responses are pretty similar aren’t they?
OK let’s try a group experiment now. Wherever you are sitting look up. Do you see a wall? No? Well find one. Look to your left, your right or just visualize it. You got it now? Great. OK we all share this wall right now. It is our group wall. I want each of you to close your eyes and go into the recesses of your mind. I’d like you to pull up a significant moment in your life. It could be good, it could be devastating. It could be of success or of failure, endings or beginnings. Take a moment. Find something good- really good that you don’t mind sharing with the rest of us.
Now, take a screenshot of that moment and fling it up onto the wall. Don’t worry it will stick, I made sure I covered the wall with that post-it note glue so your moment will stick for us all to see. Now watch the wall. Do you see? Do you see it filling with hundreds of snapshots? Let’s make it thousands – let’s see across the world what important moment’s people choose. I see happy times, oh dear I see sadness. I am so sorry to you over there for your loss. Goodness do you see the one with the small children playing? Or the elderly person wincing in pain. Do you see the woman whose husband has just left her with three children to raise? I see flood waters. I see smiles. I see worry, despair and I see hope. I see birthday parties with colorful balloons. I see it all.
Isn’t it remarkable, all these stories out there.
These snapshots represent us, and the lives our space is filled up with as we live
Now pick a snapshot that is not yours. Find the one that stands out to you, gosh there are so many to choose from! Take another moment here and reflect on it. Notice the images, the colours, and the mood it invokes. Can you feel it? Great. Remember your answer to my first question? What is kindness to you? Invert that. What is kindness in this moment you are looking at? What could kindness manifest as? What impact could it have? How can you reach out and into that snapshot of somebody’s life? What would you like to contribute?
Free yourself from judgement here. This is important. Reflect for a moment. How is that person’s life different to yours? What do you see? Feel? Can you hear?
We all live. Our experiences, feelings, hopes, dreams may vary but I reckon if you look long enough you will find connection and shared moments. Regardless of lifestyle, race, gender, location, values and beliefs.
There is always a ripple effect. No matter how small and insignificant you feel your actions may be. You will never know the impact your actions have on another person so my message to you is this.
Choose kindness over self-interest. It does not need to be a big thing. I have written about this before. The power of a smile is sometimes enough, because you know a smile is contagious right? It totally is! Like yawns but better. Imagine if you smiled at someone kindly and they transferred that smile to the the person sitting in the park crying. That smile gave that sad person hope that a better day will come. What a gift!
Let’s share that.