Love and Lattes: Easy Acts of Kindness

Leave a tip and a little thank you note in the tip jar at your favorite coffee or ice cream shop.

Many of us remember the days when we had to work retail or hospitality while in high school or college. The staff is working hard so show your appreciation for your latte and their positive attitude with a dollar or two. I have put in little “good job” notes in the tip jar at my local Peets Coffee and Tea as I think good work should be acknowledged and people should know they are appreciated and their boss should know, too! I have make lifelong friends at the two Peets I have frequented and it nice to see a friend across the counter every morning. Those relationships all began with four little words, “How are you today?”

Hi there! (& other simple acts of kindness)

Try something new and check out the Just Say Hello Campaign on Oprah’s website.

The campaign (find it at www.oprah.com) encourages kindness and strives to combat loneliness by reading our and connecting. A howdy-do to a stranger might make your day and a new pal in the process. I read about this excellent friendliness project in Oprah’s O Magazine a few Sundays ago and immediately felt inspired to try it that day. My boyfriend and I went to do our weekend chores, which include fresh flowers from our neighborhood stand. An older gentleman was standing there smelling the roses, always a good idea in my mind. I remembered to say “Hi” as instructed by Oprah and he responded with a big smile and wanted my input on flowers he wanted to buy for a lady friend.  As you might imagine, quite a conversation ensued and my boyfriend joined in, who is even friendlier than I am. Soon the florist was involved and our new gentleman friend turned out to be a fascinating conversationalist. He had been a fighter pilot in the Korean War, very highly decorated and has travelled all over the world before returning back home to El Cerrito. Widowed some years back, he was only beginning to get back out there and date. After landing upon a carefully selected bouquet of red roses and pink lilies, he headed off to the dance at the senior center. I noticed he has a good bit of pep in his step and I remember having a good feeling about his first date. We kept our eyes peeled for Colonel Jarvis when in the vicinity of the flower shop and sure enough we saw him and he had pictures of his lady friend from the dance featuring a corsage he had gotten for her. Things were looking pretty swell all around and he looked pleased as punch.

So, thanks Oprah for another great idea!

Feed an Elephant for a Day

200 Squares a Day 

 

Do you know how much an elephant needs to eat per day? At least 200 pounds of chow! Spring for $30 bucks and you can feed a “retired” elephant all day long. Many of the denizens of Tennessee elephant sanctuary are former showgirls who left the three rings circus behind. Check out www.elephants.com

Be a Pen Pal With a US Soldier

If you are on the other side of the world, think how wonderful it would be get a handwritten letter!

Upon learning about the Veteran’s History Project, I was reminded that our service men and women are doing just that, SERVICE. And they should be thanked for it. Many of these noble souls are very far away and receive little mail to their camp or barrack. Take a few moments to acknowledge their contribution and offer a friendly hello from back home in the USA. You can learn all about Operation Write Home at operationwritehome.gov.  I have heard of great pen pal relationships come out of this gesture of gratitude, too.

Child Trafficking Awareness: How to Help

It is almost hard to believe that this goes on in 2018 but it does more than we know: 

Support Love146, an organization that provides holistic care to children who have survived exploitation, enforced labor, abuse and even slavery. These children have been through so much so think about what you can give and give it.   Join a task force, fundraise for abolition, spread the word, or donate to this cause on http://www.love146.org/

Donate Your Miles to Military Families

If you have frequent flier miles you're not going to use, give them to service members:

There are many in the military who have been injured in the line of duty and need to be flown to get proper medical treatment. This can also enable family members to visit.  As the song goes, "love lifts you up so you can fly." Check out fisherhouse.org to discover all you need to know about Fisher House Foundation’s Hero Miles Program. Love has an enormous power to heal so sharing your unused miles stretches YOUR love a mighty long way!

Give An Hour: Volunteer to Help Veterans

I think the passing of Senator John McCain has made us all think about our military veterans more.

 

Counselors can contribute enormously to our troops when the return back at the end of their service term. I honestly think my Ex-Marine dad has PTSD but that posttraumatic stress was not even acknowledged until long after the Viet Nam War and only through the activism of many.  Therapists and mental health professionals can really help our military veterans by volunteering their own service through the organization Give an Hour (giveanhour.org) and this is extremely helpful to families of vets. Listening can change lives for the better here in a big way.