National Kindness Day

Got to be kind....

 

Did you know that today is National Kindness Day? No, we didn't here at the Oakeley Arms either, but we're fast thinking up some good deeds we can do for the day.

 

National Kindness Day comes from the World Kindness Movement (WKM) which was started in 1996 in Japan. The idea is that business, corporations, greed, fortunes and economies are  all forgotten for a day, and instead the focus is on being kind and doing kind deeds to create and inspire a nicer, more harmonious world.

 

As part of last year's event, more than 30,000 flowers were given out to strangers on the streets of Singapore and in Australia, a mass-hug was organised on Bondi beach. But, the emphasis of Kindness Day isn't necessarily about grand gestures and expensive presents, it's about the small things that make a difference to another person's day.

 

Here are some ideas for little acts of kindness:

• Offer to help an elderly or vulnerable person nearby
• Clear our your wardrobe and take your unwanted items to a local charity shop
• Put out some bird seed as a kindness to the local birds!
• Buy a sandwich and give it a homeless person
• Spend 10 minutes thinking kind and positive thoughts for a friend or relative who needs them.
• Offer to take your best friend out for lunch, for no other reason than "just because".
• Be kind to the planet - make a pact to buy a bag for life and not use plastic bags in future.
• Smile and say "good morning" to a stranger (not if it's in the evening, obviously.... or they'll be extra kind to you and  lock you up!)
• Buy an extra box of pet food and take it to the local animal shelter.
• Let someone who looks in a hurry go ahead of you at the queue for the till
• Buy your husband/wife/partner/girlfriend/boyfriend/grandmother/aunty their favourite chocolate bar.
• Start filling a shoe-box with christmas gifts for a charitable cause.
• Help a friend with a DIY project, walk their dog or baby-sit for them
• Give your unused pay&display ticket to another car as you leave the car park
• Bake some biscuits or cakes and leave them out for the postman/binmen/courier
• Buy a drink for the person stood next to you at the bar
• Make a small donation to charity, or put your change from your shopping in a charity collection tin.

So, as we're thinking about what little acts of kindness we can do today, we'll just be ummmm hanging out here at the Oakeley bar, hoping for an act of kindess ourselves!!

 

You can read more about Kindness Day and Kindness UK here

 

 

Be kind to birds today....

Image by twitchtoo on sxc.hu