Can I be honest with you? I'm pretty sure I can, hive seems to be a safe space mostly...
Truth: I think I'm a pretty good guy overall. Sure I've done some very bad things in my life, things some may perceive as very bad, that I'll never speak of but overall I am a decent person. I'm kind, generous, respectful, courteous, polite, humorous, dependable, humble, good in an emergency, decisive and a whole raft of other things...But I'm also a whole lot of other less uplifting things that most people may feel too...I sometimes lack confidence, can be too hard on people, have high, sometimes unattainable, standards, don't like how I look physically...You know, all the doubts normal people usually have about themselves.
It's funny that depending on my mood certain things become more prevalent; It's like all those personality traits which reside inside me ebb and flow in response to the outside world, the events and scenarios that make up my life. I guess that's common to us all as well.
Currently my wife and I are facing some very tough scenarios around the health, and probable demise of, her mother through cancer. That one thing, if not big enough of itself, is surrounded by a conglomeration of other peripheral matters that have arisen, some emotional and some logistical, all needing attention. I'll not go into it here however suffice it to say that our energy levels are low at a time when we need the tanks to be full for the road ahead.
Smiles, laughter and happiness are a bit thin on the ground at the moment, often replaced with frowns of worry and lengthy what if deliberations. Today I arrived at my daily café carrying one of those frowns despite working hard to hide it.
As soon as I got to the counter the three girls who run the café asked what was wrong; They know Faith and I well and are aware of the situation however with my excellent acting skills I was able to brush it aside and indicate all was indeed well. They knew better of course, but didn't push it.
I ordered a coffee and came over to my table to write a post for hive. This is where I sit as I type this.
A few moments later my coffee arrived which you can see pictured.
I didn't order the melting moment cookie though, nor the uplifting message that accompanied my coffee...That just arrived courtesy of the girls...A random act of kindness.
No one is you & that is your power
That's the note they wrote on the napkin...It's nice huh? Not because I saved three dollars on the cookie, but because someone thought I could benefit from this rather small act of kindness, that they felt inclined to do it in the first place, and that they used that particular quote. It made me smile, which was their intention I guess.
It's a great quote and one that made me think about me...I am me, and no one else is and whilst power is not what I seek I have it nonetheless...The power to affect my mood, my thoughts, attitudes and actions. It was a timely reminder.
Random acts of kindness
I can only speak for myself here, but deploying a random act of kindness, especially when it's not expected, is one of the most rewarding things I have ever done - And I do it a lot; It doesn't have to be a material thing either. A smile, genuine compliment, offering someone a hand to lift something, holding a door, asking how their day was, wishing them the best...There's a thousand things a person can do for another with the intention of uplifting them.
Today I got a cookie and a quote which made me smile, feel better, and prompted this post!
So...Here's the thing...I decided I'll pay it forward to someone else today and, if you happen to reading this, maybe you might like to do the same? You never know what that small random act of kindness you make could mean to someone.
Have a great day y'all, be humble and kind.
Design and create your ideal life, don't live it by default - Tomorrow isn't promised.
Be well
Discord: galenkp#9209