For most of my adulthood, I have mistakenly believed that kindness flows from the excess in my life.
I have extra money, I can throw a little in the jar.
I have extra time, I can offer to take a neighbor to the store.
I have extra energy, I can volunteer to read to my son’s class.
Scarcity is scary. Maybe that’s why the ... Read More
I should be stripped of my crown; the badge revoked; dishonorably discharged from the ministry of kindness. I blew it.
Yesterday was World Kindness Day and I completely forgot that meant we were all supposed to do something kind to spread love and goodwill throughout our world.
Oops.
Funny that I forgot since first thing in the morning, I got a greeting card ... Read More
Whatever you look for is what you’ll see. Don’t believe me? Think about your ex: ex-husband, ex-boyfriend, ex-wife. Since I’m a woman and I’m the one writing this, let’s pick on the men for a moment. When you first met this man, the love of your life, he could do no wrong. You were drawn to each other, the chemistry ... Read More
What would have to happen to make you shout at the top of your Facebook lungs, “THE SKY IS FALLING!”?
Has it happened already?
I opened my Facebook feed twice yesterday. I was online no more than 35 seconds, just long enough to realize people feel wounded. Our eyes are focused solidly on this world, and in exchange, we are turning into ... Read More
Have you seen it? Have you seen the video from the marketing agency in Canada asking its citizens to tell America why it’s great? I thought it had to be a sham. My normally trusting nature became skeptical. Then I watched the video. I looked into the eyes of those Canadians, and I thought, “They like us! They really like ... Read More
My daughter woke up to 120 text messages on her phone this morning. One hundred and twenty.
We go dark in our house about 9pm, so those 120 messages came in sometime between the hours of 9pm and 7am.
Clearly there must have been some great crisis happening overnight in the world of our almost teenage daughters.
Nope.
Just lots of talk about what ... Read More
I’m in need of a little Fargo love and I’m wondering if you can help.
I’ve been invited to speak at a women’s event at a church in Fargo. Can we all thank God at this very moment that the event is being held in April instead of the dead of winter? My North Dakota blood has thinned quite a bit ... Read More
I got my first cellphone on Christmas morning, 2003. I was eight months pregnant, and if my water broke in the middle of Piggly Wiggly, my husband wanted to know about it. I thought I could just go to the customer service desk and ask them to call him, but he wasn’t in favor of that plan.
I was certain this ... Read More
I was staring down the barrel of an hour long ride with a total stranger in downtown Chicago. I needed to get to the airport by 8:30 in the morning to make my flight home. That meant hopping in the car before my morning coffee had kicked in.
I requested an Uber on my phone and then stood in front of ... Read More
They say when it rains, it pours. That can be true in trials, but in my life, I’ve found that it’s also true in kindness.
In times of trouble, the smallest act of love is amplified. A note in the mail, a phone call or a text message can go far in lifting someone’s spirits. I still remember the gigantic card ... Read More
