Random Acts of Kindess: I Dare You to Pay It Forward

Random acts of kindness. Think about it. When was the last time you were actually a recipient of one of these rare but magical moments where a perfect stranger does something for you that is completely selfless and asks for nothing in return?

I’m talking about the guy who sees you struggling to reach an item on the VERY top shelf at the store and without being asked, gets it down for you. No, he’s not an employee either, although it would be nice if store employees paid more attention to their customers, wouldn’t it?

I was actually witness to a random act of kindness the other day. My daughter had gone up to the counter at McDonald’s at the mall for ice cream. She had pulled out her own money, but I was unaware she didn’t have enough to pay for the tax.

As I was digging through my purse for those pesky pennies, a gentleman behind us plopped down the change on the counter. He did so with a wink at my daughter, who thanked him (thank God). It made her day and mine, too. And it got me thinking about “paying it forward” and what that means.

Ever hear of "pay it forward"? It’s kind of like banking good juju so that when bad juju comes your way, you have a little bit of a buffer. 

Today’s world has become selfish, too self-absorbed to think about anyone else but ourselves. We are selfish on the roads, in restaurants, in stores and anywhere else we might come in contact with another human being. Random acts of kindness have become endangered. Occasionally, they make a resurgence at Christmas, but all to often, the ugly side comes out too, negating the good.

Paying it forward is the opposite of payback. The doing of a good deed … just because. 

Some examples:

You pass an expired parking meter and put in a quarter to help that person avoid a ticket. 

Buy a lottery ticket and give it to a perfect stranger. 

Let the person with only five items go ahead of you at the grocery store.    

Give up your seat for someone, anyone.

Leave a thank you note to the person who cleans your office bathroom.

I’m sure all of you out there can think of a dozen or so things you could do in the next couple of days to “pay it forward.” Get the kids involved! They might surprise you with their ideas. Here’s a great website to help get them involved: 

http://www.kidactivities.net/category/Random-Acts-of-Kindness.aspx

As Ann Hebert wrote on a placemat in a restaurant she visited about 20 or so years ago, “Practice random kindness and senseless acts of beauty.” I challenge all of you reading this to go out and do so. I’d love to hear about what you did and what reaction you got!