{"id":437,"date":"2019-03-22T16:30:38","date_gmt":"2019-03-22T21:30:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lindagorchels.com\/blogs\/?p=437"},"modified":"2019-05-01T21:30:30","modified_gmt":"2019-05-02T02:30:30","slug":"practice-random-acts-of-kindness","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lindagorchels.com\/blogs\/practice-random-acts-of-kindness\/","title":{"rendered":"Practice Random Acts of Kindness"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p style=\"text-align:center\" class=\"has-text-color has-vivid-cyan-blue-color\">The other day at the gym I overheard a snippet of a conversation. \u201c<em><strong>For Lent I\u2019ve decided to practice random acts of kindness.\u201d<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Now, I\u2019ve heard of people giving up chocolate for Lent. I even heard\nnews broadcasts about a man who had given up beer for Lent, and another man who\nsaid he gave up everything EXCEPT beer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But doing more random acts of kindness as a resolution? What a great and relevant idea!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"alignleft is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/lindagorchels.com\/blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/book_hug_18673-300x196.png\" alt=\"Random Acts of Kindness\" class=\"wp-image-439\" width=\"225\" height=\"147\" srcset=\"https:\/\/lindagorchels.com\/blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/book_hug_18673-300x196.png 300w, https:\/\/lindagorchels.com\/blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/book_hug_18673-768x502.png 768w, https:\/\/lindagorchels.com\/blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/book_hug_18673-459x300.png 459w, https:\/\/lindagorchels.com\/blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/book_hug_18673.png 1000w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 225px) 100vw, 225px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>I decided to research the topic and came across the \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.randomactsofkindness.org\/\">official site<\/a>.\u201d It\u2019s\nowned by The Random Acts of Kindness\n(RAK) Foundation, a small nonprofit that invests resources into making kindness\nthe norm. While there were no suggestions about using this as a Lenten activity,\nit did provide a host of kindness ideas. I also learned you can sign up to be a\nRAKtivists\u00ae, short for \u2018Random Acts of Kindness activist.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The definition of Random Act of Kindness<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Random_act_of_kindness\">Wikipedia<\/a> offers the\nfollowing definition:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p><em>A random act of kindness is a nonpremeditated, inconsistent action designed to offer kindness towards the outside world. The phrase &#8220;practice random kindness and senseless acts of beauty&#8221; was written by Anne Herbert on a placemat in Sausalito, California in 1982. It was based on the phrase &#8220;random acts of violence and senseless acts of cruelty&#8221;. Herbert&#8217;s book Random Kindness and Senseless Acts of Beauty was published in February 1993 speaking about true stories of acts of kindness.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Random Acts of Kindness in the News<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>With all the bad news we hear all the time, it\u2019s nice to take a step\nback and focus on some of the good stuff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here is a partial story from Channel 5 News in Seattle, Washington:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p><em>Police departments across the U.S. are challenging one another to surprise people with random acts of kindness in a campaign coined &#8220;#OperationPayItForward.&#8221;&nbsp;<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p><em>It started when a stranger surprised two LAPD officers by paying for their food at a restaurant. The two officers wanted to pay it forward, so they filmed a video of themselves paying for three cars behind them at a fast food drive thru window.&nbsp;<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p><em>LAPD posted the video on its Twitter account, challenging the New York Police Department to perform a similar act of kindness.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p><em>NYPD followed through, posting a video&nbsp;of two of its officers treating customers to free pizza, &#8220;cause everybody knows we got the best pizza,&#8221; one of the officers said.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>The random acts of kindness challenge continued to police departments across the country. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here\u2019s another human interest news story from the Champaign, IL News-Gazette:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p><em>ELLEN HARMS<br> Volunteer, Daily Bread Soup Kitchen<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p><em>&#8220;A woman came into the Soup Kitchen, distraught because she had lost her shoes. It was a cool autumn day, and she was wearing only a thin pair of socks.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p><em>&#8220;She insisted that her shoes, a pair of pink Crocs, must be somewhere in the building, although she also thought that someone might have stolen her shoes.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p><em>&#8220;One of our volunteers quietly began talking to the woman and calmed her down. The volunteer then checked our lost-and-found box, and she even searched the bathroom with the woman.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p><em>&#8220;Finally, she was able to settle the agitated woman down at a table with a plate of food, a steaming bowl of soup, a cup of coffee and a piece of pie. What I noticed next was heartwarming.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p><em>&#8220;After she ate, the woman without shoes walked out the door wearing a new pair of shoes and smiling broadly. Shortly after the woman left, the DBSK volunteer walked to her car \u2014 wearing only her socks.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p><em>&#8220;She was smiling too.&#8221;<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What can you do?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>An act of kindness doesn\u2019t have to be large or impressive (although it\ncan be). And it doesn\u2019t have to take a lot of time (although that\u2019s okay, too).\nIt must just be sincere. Here are 20 ideas that may have been posted on various\nwebsites (or that just sprung into my head).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Pick up litter<\/li><li>Hold the door for a person carrying boxes<\/li><li>Stop to allow a pedestrian or bicyclist to cross\nthe street<\/li><li>Compliment a stranger<\/li><li>Bake cookies for the elderly<\/li><li>Surrender a good parking spot<\/li><li>Include a shy person in your conversation<\/li><li>Forgive, even if it\u2019s hard<\/li><li>Listen without judgment to those who disagrees\nwith you<\/li><li>Give people the benefit of the doubt<\/li><li>Offer to help<\/li><li>Volunteer at a local nonprofit<\/li><li>Send a thank-you note that\u2019s deserved but not\nexpected<\/li><li>Smile at others, even when you don\u2019t feel like\nit<\/li><li>Give up your seat on the bus <\/li><li>Babysit for free<\/li><li>Be a Good Samaritan<\/li><li>Engage in a conversation without reaching for\nyour phone<\/li><li>Relinquish your spot in line at a store or\nrestaurant<\/li><li>Hold the elevator<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Obviously this is list is incomplete. Since these are random acts, there can &#8216;t be a full list. The point is, try something. Then keep the kindness flowing.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The other day at the gym I overheard a snippet of a conversation. \u201cFor Lent I\u2019ve decided to practice random acts of kindness.\u201d Now, I\u2019ve heard of people giving up chocolate for Lent. I even heard news broadcasts about a&hellip; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-437","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-hodgepodge"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Practice Random Acts of Kindness - Linda Gorchels blogs<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/lindagorchels.com\/blogs\/practice-random-acts-of-kindness\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Practice Random Acts of Kindness - Linda Gorchels blogs\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The other day at the gym I overheard a snippet of a conversation. \u201cFor Lent I\u2019ve decided to practice random acts of kindness.\u201d Now, I\u2019ve heard of people giving up chocolate for Lent. 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