When I first started writing this “Kindness is Contagious” column nine years ago, I misunderstood what “weekly” meant.
The publisher said, “It’s a weekly column.” I heard, “Write it when you have something to write about.”
I asked readers to send in their stories of kindness, but I quickly learned to become an investigator of kindness in my own life so I ... Read More
I lost my dear friend, Tom, just before Christmas.
He was in his late 80s and his quality of life was diminishing, but even so, it’s hard to say goodbye.
One of the great gifts of these past six months was the amount of times I was able to visit Tom and his wife, Ann. My family’s move from Ohio to South ... Read More
For everything there is a season.
I’m saying goodbye to my dear friend, Tom, today. Tom was 86 and had cancer and a whole host of other health problems, yet I was shocked to learn he was gone.
He lived a good, full life and I know what he is seeing now is too magnificent for words. If he used ... Read More
The heart of a child often sees and feels things we miss as adults. That’s why I’ve been highlighting how kids’ kindness is contagious this month.
I’d like to introduce you to one more special child who made a big impact in his short time. With Mason’s love for everything about superheroes, his parents, Ralph and Erin Sturms, continue to carry ... Read More
I woke up this morning and knew I couldn’t write.
As a general rule, I don’t like to write for public consumption (for other people to read) until I have processed my thoughts and feelings about an event. Sometimes writing helps me think things through, but in general, I have to come to a conclusion about how God is working ... Read More
My friend lost her dad just days after Christmas. I’ve never been in a situation where I needed to console a friend after a parent’s death, so I was on new ground.
Am I talking too much or too little? Am I loving her in the way she needs to be loved or in the way I would want to be ... Read More
I love it when I sit down and the words are easy. They just flow, they don’t take too much mental energy and they don’t make me weepy when I re-read them.
These words are not going to be easy. I can tell. Because these are the words that keep coming to my mind: Forgive me.
At the beginning of the school ... Read More
My friend, Ann, finds pennies in the strangest places. She even found one in the tiny skull skeleton of a squirrel in her yard. Skull skeleton of a squirrel—try saying that 10 times fast.
I’m sure I wrinkled my nose and shrieked, “Gross!” when she told me, but to Ann, it wasn’t gross at all. It was beautiful.
Everything about finding that ... Read More
