Recently a priest at my church ended his homily with some advice on practicing kindness during Advent, Christmas, and Christmastide. To paraphrase one of his tips, he suggested that every time we enter a business, our workplaces, or even our own homes, we pause for just a moment and pledge to show kindness to all we meet.
His remarks brought to my mind Robert Burns’ “Auld Lang Syne,” that traditional song which ushers in the New Year:
For auld lang syne, my jo
For auld lang syne
We’ll tak’ a cup o’ kindness yet
For auld lang syne.
“Auld lang syne” is a Scots term meaning “for old times’ sake;” “my jo” is “my dear.” The song bids us raise our glass and toast old friendships.
And what better time than the Yuletide and the New Year to extend this cup of generosity and consideration to others, both friends and strangers? After all, churchgoers or not, Christmas for most Americans means giving more than getting. We select gifts for friends and family members in hopes of bringing delight, and many of us donate to charities during the holiday season or slip a buck into that Salvation Army kettle outside a store.
We can give ourselves as gifts to others as well. The guy who opens the coffee shop door for a mom struggling with her purse and Christmas packages while pushing a baby stroller has just tipped the world in the right direction. The employer who leaves a note of condolence and an invitation to coffee on the desk of her bereaved secretary has brought one more candle to the darkness.
In 2024, Readers Digest invited subscribers to submit brief personal stories about an act of kindness someone had shown them. Here are two of the 30 published. If nothing else, these stories make excellent decongestants if you’re suffering from a winter cold.
I forgot about the rule preventing liquids in carry-on luggage, so when I hit security at the airport, I had to give up all my painting supplies. When I returned a week later, an attendant was at the baggage area with my paints. Not only had he kept them for me, but he’d looked up my return date and time in order to meet me. —Marilyn Kinsella, Canmore, Canada
As I walked through the parking lot, all I could think about was the dire diagnosis I had handed my patient Jimmy: pancreatic cancer. Just then, I noticed an elderly gentleman handing tools to someone working under his stalled car. That someone was Jimmy. ‘Jimmy, what are you doing?’ I yelled out. Jimmy dusted off his pants. ‘My cancer didn’t tell me not to help others, Doc,’ he said, before waving at the old man to start the car. The engine roared to life. The old man thanked Jimmy and drove off. Then Jimmy got into his car and took off as well. Take-home message: Kindness has no limits and no restrictions. —Mohammed Basha, Gainesville, Florida
If we take to heart news reports and online commentary, we might conclude that kindness is rare in America today. Yet what I’ve found in my day-to-day, smalltown life is the opposite. Ask someone on the street for directions, and you’re unlikely to be brushed off. Step inside the small shops and restaurants on Main Street, and the clerk or receptionist generally greets you with a smile. When a storm brought down a large willow tree on the property where I lived, a neighbor showed up with his chainsaw and told me he felt like cutting some wood.
The movie “Love Actually” opens in London’s Heathrow Airport where Hugh Grant, who plays the prime minister, does a voice-over.
Whenever I get gloomy with the state of the world, I think about the arrivals gate at Heathrow Airport,” he says. “General opinion's starting to make out that we live in a world of hatred and greed, but I don't see that. It seems to me that love is everywhere. … If you look for it, I’ve got a sneaky feeling you’ll find that love actually is all around.
Substitute kindness for love in those sentences, and that same sneaky feeling holds true.
This holiday season offers more than the opportunity to look for kindness. We have the great, good fortune to show compassion and goodwill to others.
And here’s the best part: Kindness is contagious. We’re not just giving a gift, however large or small, to one or two people when we’re kindhearted. They’re likely to pay it forward to others as well.
Begin with a smile and go from there.
Jeff Minick is a father of four and grandfather to many. A former history, literature, and Latin teacher, Jeff now writes prolifically for The Epoch Times, American Essence Magazine, and several other publications.
This culture article was made possible by The Fred & Rheta Skelton Center for Cultural Renewal, a project of 1819 News. To comment on this article, please email [email protected]. The views and opinions expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the policy or position of 1819 News.
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