# of divers

Thursday, July 14, 2011

50 simple ways to pay it forward - by Belinda Munoz

I have learned from experience that when we commit an act of kindness for others, for strangers, it’s only a matter of time before that kindness comes back to us.

Being kind is a gift that gives both to the giver and the receiver. Call it “what goes around comes around”. I don’t even think we need to learn or listen to, or engage in all this talk of universal laws and the law of cause and effect, the law of attraction, etc. 

I propose something simpler and more direct:
how about we see for ourselves through practice?

What little, simple acts of kindness can we do to pay it forward today?

1). put a quarter in a meter, any meter, that’s about to expire

2). leave a copy of a really great book you’ve read in a cafe for someone else to enjoy

3). be nice to the customer service people who are trying to help you with your technological difficulties

4). tip your restaurant server generously

5). thank the cooks, waitstaff and bussers personally

6). say something nice or funny or goofy to the toll booth attendant (“Don’t drive too fast, now” or . “Glad to have encountered you today”, or something less hokey)

7). forgive a driver directing road rage at you

8). buy or pack a meal for a homeless person (or give him/her your to-go box from a restaurant)

9). give a warm coat to a homeless person

10). offer to do pro bono work on a project where your skills are needed

11). mentor someone

12). make a donation

13). say a prayer or whisper a kind wish for someone

14). compliment a stranger

15). send a box of donuts or bagels or muffins to a construction site

16). next time you leave a foreign country, give all or some of what’s left of your currency to someone who resides in that country

17). next time you’re at the airport offer to pull the bags belonging to a woman or a mother with child out of the conveyor belt

18). praise generously

19). give local tips (re: restaurants, sights, etc.) to a tourist

20). show respect equally to all human beings

21). put a tip in a street musician’s jar

22). let someone cut in front of you at the grocery store

23). tell a funny joke to a stranger

24). give someone a chance to prove him or herself

25). encourage someone to pursue their dream

26). allow someone to let his or her light shine

27). show support to an artist or writer or musician

28). hold the door open for someone

29). tip a cab driver generously

30). teach a child something you wish you knew at that age

31). smile at someone who is sad

32). smile at strangers

33). offer sincere, kind words to someone who is hurting

34). visit a hospice and spend some time with a terminally ill patient

35). volunteer at a battered women’s shelter

36). spend some time with a senior citizen living alone

37). give up your seat on a crowded bus or train or ferry

38). inspire someone to be the best that they can be

39). give someone the benefit of the doubt

40). offer to babysit for a single mother

41). offer the FedEx, UPS or DHL delivery person something to drink especially on a warm day

42). help a pregnant lady

43). sit and talk with a homeless person and learn their story

44). loan something to someone and forget about it

45). loan money on Kiva

46). contribute to a child’s education fund

47). give blood

48). show respect to a soldier regardless of your pacifism

49). donate to or volunteer for the Make-A-Wish Foundation

50). replace an angry or bitter thought toward someone with a loving thought (or at least try)

Kindness, like a boomerang, always returns. 
- author unknown

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My goodness this gets me warm and fuzzy.
Have a beautiful day
x
          


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