This is the time of year when I tend to sit back and consider how my year has been and what I’ve done during that year to help others. Now, don’t get me wrong, I don’t advocate giving more than you can afford in time or cost, but I’m a huge advocate of giving when I can.
I’m convinced that before I started to really look for opportunities to give to others, I had the same number of opportunities I do now but I was blind to them. I never saw them because I never LOOKED for them.
I’m not talking things like giving thousands to someone or even hundreds – I actually think that people do look for these opportunities but they are few and far between for us all. But what about all the small opportunities that present themselves every day. Things like:
- Opening a door for a harried delivery person.
- Writing a note of support, sympathy or congratulations.
- Getting a box of pasta down from the top shelf of a store for someone who can’t reach it.
- Telling your office receptionist how much you appreciate her hard work.
- Taking a grocery store cart back in the rain for someone else.
- Buying a cup of coffee for the policeman in line behind you.
- Shaking the hand of a service member and thanking them for their service.
I can’t tell you how much each of these small acts brighten my own day and I’d like to think that it brightens the day of the recipients as well. Some cost very little, some are free – but all are acts of kindness that require no reciprocation and I try to perform a few larger acts, always anonymously. I never want this to become something I do for recognition or with an expectation of return.
So, again, on this Thanksgiving Weekend, I want to renew my vow to give others small, random acts to be thankful for. I challenge everyone to do the same.
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