A customer just gave me this gorgeous bouquet after I carried her dog food bag to her car.

It didn't just make my morning, but it reminded me that just a little bit of kindness or generosity can completely change someone's day. You really never know what someone is going through.

If you're not going to interact with people today, spoil your pets for me, or be kind to yourself. You deserve it!

During a very busy and stressful time at work, I get a phone call from daycare one morning telling me my toddler has fever and to come get her. I get an appt. with the pediatrician and bring her straight there. We were kept waiting for over an hour with no one else in the waiting room and I could hear the Dr. talking on the phone. Go straight to the pharmacy to pick up the antibiotics r/x and ear drops. There was a long wait, so I sat on a bench nearby with sick, whiny, clingy kid praying they'd hurry so I could go home.

Then a woman (I'll call her Joy, for obvious reasons) walks in with a pre-teen son in her shopping cart. I'm not sure the name of his condition, but the entire lower half of his body is missing. Joy is cheery and hugs/greets many people she sees in the store. Other kids high-five her son and they laugh and cut up like kids their age do. They're not dressed in expensive name-brand clothes/shoes. Just regular folks. They both appear to be well thought of by others.

Then a young couple with a small child in the buggy are checking out at the register. The kid (3 maybe?) is holding a toy still in the box. Mom hands it to the cashier and when she scans it, the cost of the toy was obviously more than she was prepared to pay. She gave Dad an exasperated look - like 'how could you'? She shakes her head to the cashier.

Meanwhile, Joy, engaged nearby in conversation with someone else, has been paying attention to the whole thing. She leans over and quietly asks the Mom to please let her pay for the toy. Mom, flustered, says 'thanks, but you don't have to do that'. Joy says quietly and sincerely 'please let me' and she hands some cash to the cashier, then returns to her conversation. All quick, quiet, no fuss, no attention.

I'm stressed about work, a sick kid, aggravated after been kept waiting for so long at the Doctor's office, and now waiting at the pharmacy. At a glance, Joy's life surely wasn't perfect. But she was still kind and generous. It broke me and I had to wipe away tears.

It shifted everything. Instead of letting the overwhelmingly crappy day bring me down, I refocused on the things that were good. I have a family, healthy children, a home, friends, a job and JOY.

That happened over 25 years ago and I still think of her often. Witnessing one small act of genuine kindness was truly magic in an otherwise ordinary day.

Hi there! ❤️

I'm writing this for anyone who struggles with intrusive thoughts that keep coming back. I know how exhausting and stressful it can feel when unwanted thoughts appear, especially when they involve negativity, misunderstandings, upsetting memories, or fears about your future, job, or career.

Please remember a few important things:

Having intrusive thoughts isn't your fault. They can appear without you choosing them, and having a thought doesn't mean you agree with it or want it to happen.

Intrusive thoughts aren't facts, commands, or predictions. They are thoughts, not proof that something will happen in real life.

Here are four things that may help when you're feeling overwhelmed.

1. Take 10 slow breaths

Relax your shoulders and breathe slowly and comfortably. If it feels comfortable, breathe in gently through your nose for 4 seconds, then breathe out for 6 seconds.

Repeat this 10 times at your own pace. Don't force your breathing or hold your breath if it feels uncomfortable.

Slow breathing may help you feel calmer, although it works differently for everyone.

2. Learn more about intrusive thoughts

You can search Google for reliable information about managing intrusive thoughts and look for educational videos on YouTube. Dr Alex Howard is one person you could explore.

If intrusive thoughts are affecting your daily life, consider talking to a trusted adult, school counsellor, or mental health professional. You deserve support, and you don't have to handle everything alone.

3. Be kind to yourself ❤️

Sometimes unwanted thoughts make us worry that people dislike us, that something bad will happen, or that we should give up on our dreams and careers.

Please remember:

• A thought isn't proof that something is true.

• A thought isn't a command you must follow.

• A thought about the future doesn't tell you what will happen.

• Having an unwanted thought doesn't mean you chose it.

You deserve kindness and patience. Keep taking small steps toward the things that matter to you.

4. Try the 5–4–3–2–1 grounding exercise 🌎

Gently bring your attention to your surroundings:

• 5 things you can see

• 4 things you can feel

• 3 things you can hear

• 2 things you can smell

• 1 thing you can taste

Take your time. This exercise may help you reconnect with the present when you're feeling overwhelmed.

A little about my experience 💙

I've struggled with intrusive thoughts for about a year, and it has been exhausting at times. I've been learning different ways to respond to them, and I feel better now.

I'm sharing this because I want everyone struggling with intrusive thoughts to remember that they are not alone. There are people who care about you, and you deserve kindness, understanding, and support.

If you're going through a difficult time, please be patient with yourself. You deserve support, and you can continue working toward your goals.

I'm cheering for everyone who's struggling. Sending kindness and a big virtual hug to everyone reading this. 🫂❤️

Please take care of yourself. You matter, and you deserve kindness.

I feel overwhelmed by online hate lately.

There's a picture going around right now of a woman crying on the plane. The other woman who took the picture said the crying woman asked her if she could switch seats with her to sit closer to her husband, and the woman declined (as was her right). Apparently the crying woman then cried for 3 hours.

The hate the crying woman is getting is overwhelming. People are saying she purposely cried for 3 hours in an attempt to guilt or manipulate the other woman into changing seats with her.

My view is, I think it would be difficult to be upset and cry for a full 3 hours if you weren't actually upset about something. Maybe she was having a panic attack, maybe she just received some awful news, maybe someone close to her passed and she was flying to a funeral.

The point is we just don't know her situation. Sure, it's entirely possible she was crying just so she could switch seats, but I honestly doubt it if it was over 3 hours.

I'd just rather live my life with compassion and kindness and not automatically assume everyone is manipulative and doing everything to be selfish. I'm sad that so many people seemed to gleefully attack this woman online when she seems to be going through a really rough time.

kindness to yourself is real, hope this helps someone else too :),

This world is guilty of making me learn that being kind comes with a cost. If you're kind to people, they'll use you. I learned this over time, and now I struggle to trust people. This world taught me that you can be wrong for doing good things without wanting anything in return.

In Denmark, children aged 6 to 16 spend one hour each week in a class called Klassens tid. They sit together and talk about problems and solve them as a team. Many reports say this became mandatory in 1993.

A study of 279,000 students in 44 countries, reported by the University of Southern Denmark, found that Danish children are among the least bullied in Europe. Researchers say online bullying still needs work. No study proves the class alone caused this, yet feeling heard helps children learn care. Imagine growing up with that hour. Would the world be gentler?

Sources: University of Southern Denmark, Danish School Children’s Survey and HBSC study on bullying in 44 countries, Aleteia, “Denmark might have discovered a way to teach kids empathy”
MorningFuture, “Empathy? In Denmark, they’re learning it in school”

Often time people choose to be kind, even when they don't have to, and that right there is a superpower!!

We'd love to listen to your story about a stranger's kindness to you

Hi everyone! I posted this about a month ago and had some amazing people help me out. I’m trying to finish the project by October 31, so I’m posting again in hopes of reaching a few more places!
I’m making a sentimental gift for my boyfriend, Luke, and I’m looking for people from different cities, states, and countries who would be willing to write:

“Luke—Anne Marie’s love for you is so big, it’s reached ______.”

Fill in the blank with your city + state/country, write it on a piece of paper, and take a picture of it somewhere in your area! It can be in front of a landmark, city sign, pretty view, recognizable location—or honestly just somewhere that shows a little piece of where you live (backyards count too😂) .
Then just comment the photo here or message it to me on Reddit.
My goal is to collect as many places as I can and put all the pictures together in a book for him. ❤️
I’ll put a reference photo in the comments so you can see what I mean.
Thank you SO much to anyone willing to take a few minutes to help a stranger make a really special gift. It genuinely means more to me than you know.
I plan on posting this finished product once it’s over!

Shoutout to everyone who has helped me so far.. I absolutely adore you ♥️

I'm 30, and the year I turned 29, I met someone who turned out to be a bad person to have in my life. He made me lose a lot of friends and put me through harassment and humiliation, and the people who claimed to be my friends took part in it too. He told me he didn't like the fact that I was "too nice", and he told other people, who then repeated it to me, that he saw me as a victim, along with his so-called friends who had actually been my close friends for many years.

Some people in my social circle were shocked by what happened. They told me it was weird for people to behave that way at the age of 30, and that I was surrounded by people acting like 15-year-old teenagers.

But I'd rather stay the way I am than be as stupid as they are. Because that's all they are: idiots. Idiots who have actually told me that they know they're more intelligent than average... I have my doubts.

I think one of the sweetest things about being human is that the smallest gestures can mean so much.

Someone remembering your favorite snack. A friend checking whether you got home safely. Someone noticing that you're unusually quiet and asking if you are okay.

These little things might seem ordinary to the person doing them, but they can stay in someone's heart for years.

For me, I think it's when someone remembers something I mentioned casually weeks ago. It makes me feel like they were genuinely listening.

What about you? What's one small thing that instantly makes you feel cared for?

I love you.

I don’t know your name, who you are, or what you’ve been through, but I do know that I love you.

From the little I do know, though, I can tell you this:

You are human, just like me. We breathe the same air, we feel the same joy, and we bleed the same colour. We are both beings beneath the sun.

I know you are human, and humans have something that makes us special, something that makes you special.

It’s your ability to connect.

You possess the ability to connect to anything you wish. You can feel the sorrows of a fictional character who’s nothing more than a collection of thoughts. You can feel the bonds between the people in your life. You can feel the strength of the interests you love.

That alone makes you special.
You’re a creature designed for a purpose greater than either of us can understand.

To be human is to be more than just yourself, and you’ve succeeded. You’ve lived life in unison with all the elements that surround you, consciously or not.
You are a being of love.

And for that reason,

I love you.

​

Hello 👋 I hope everyone that is reading this is doing well. If you are here are some comforting hugs 🤗 if not just know you are not alone this community is here for you with open arms 🤗 and just know you are stronger than you think and the dark will pass and we are here for you! 🤗🫂🤗🫂🤗🫂🤗🫂🤗🫂🤗🫂🤗🫂🤗

I will not run out of comforting hugs I have an unlimited supply!! 🤗🫂🤗🫂🤗

I just wish more people were kind and considerate. It could change the world