The Kindness Project
I have declared a year of kindness. It seemed the world around me needed one, or at least I did. The goal: one act of kindness a week. One week it involved a laundry card. I went into a laundromat, bought a $50 card and waited. Soon, I saw a woman walk in with three children in tow. The oldest, probably 6, was pushing the cart with dirty laundry. The second child, definitely 3, was attached to her Mama’s leg and the youngest, 6 months or so, was being held securely on her Mama’s hip.
Quietly they went about loading the washers. I was taken aback by how this mother was a skilled conductor of this complicated symphony with her three children. I went up to her and said, “There is $50 on this laundry card. I would like to give it to you.”
“Really…really?” she said and broke into quiet tears.
“Yes, you are an amazing Mom. Please take this and have a beautiful day.” With that I was off, leaving her with her mouth hanging open and a laundry card in her hand.
Kindness doesn’t just help other people, it helps you. It changes you. I had to take a few deep breaths and put my hand over my heart to calm it for a moment. I am always amazed how these encounters affect me. It isn’t just about doing a good deed, it is about changing the world I live in, one person at a time.
Then I was off to complete my errands, one of which was stopping at the pharmacy to inquire about a medication. I was hoping for a generic. “No generic for at least three years, and your insurance company has denied it,” the pharmacist told me. Three previous pharmacists had told me it was denied. I started to walk away when he said “Wait a minute. Nobody put it through your second insurance. The second insurance usually denies if the first one does, but let’s try.” Four minutes passed. “It went through. It will now be $0 instead of $2000. If you can wait, I’ll have that for you in 15 minutes.”
“Thank you for your kindness,” I said, stunned. Getting the medication and saving money was wonderful, but what hit me was the kindness. He didn’t have to try to help me. Three other pharmacists didn’t. His concern for me and an extra moment of his time touched me more than the medication or money. I wondered if it was the same for the mother at the laundromat. But what I was sure of was that the world was a little bit kinder that day. | 
