Guest Post From Lucy Barlow - RANDOM ACTS OF KINDNESS

It is a long time since I first came across the idea of random kindness…I was working in a solicitor’s office as a conveyancer…it is a lifetime ago…I think it may have been linked to a Dave Gorman project…perhaps I will google that sometime & see if there is still something out there…

Whether the original seed for RAOK can still be traced, it  remains a large part of my life…and RAOK don’t need to be flamboyant gestures or have deep meaning and global significance…

This week, I have been touched by many moments of RAOK…

My husband, Lee, was knocked off his bicycle when hit by a car…the driver stopped, and thank God my husband is limping, sore & bruised but in one piece & still with us…my heart opens to those people who stopped their rush to work and helped him out of the road and called the ambulance and waited with him until paramedics arrived……I don’t know who they are, but I thank them for their kindness…

The paramedics deserve thanks too, although theirs is less random, their act of kindness in dedicating themselves to working in service to humanity is no less than superhuman… 

My step-brother, Alex, for stopping when he saw my husband with the paramedics and put his own working day on hold to be with my children so that I could get to the hospital to be with my husband…and then returned after a long day at work with his wife to support him whilst I had to teach…I thank them for their kindness…

the Mason Gang

Our friends the Mason Gang who made my husband the subject of their weekly RAOK “Make my Wednesday”, praying for his speedy healing, and presenting us with a goodie bag for Lee…I thank them for their kindness…

My sons, for their quiet concern (“I am sad Daddy hurt his head”, “I am worried Daddy might have another accident”) and their independent decision to draw pictures for Daddy to wish him get well soon…and their recognition that Daddy needs gentle right now & so wrestling & climbing are off the cards for a while…I thank them for their kindness…

the end of the road

A man sleeping rough at the end of our road, I wanted to show kindness and so on the school run, I stopped with my children to give him money for a warm breakfast at the cafe around the corner…when I spoke to him, a second head emerged from his jumble of coat & sleeping bag…embarrassed apologies from the small woman there, who explained nothing untoward was happening…they were clearly doing nothing but trying to stay warm & rest…I assured them they did not need to apologise…she told me that the man had simply been kind enough to offer her a warm place to sleep and to keep her safe after someone else had given her a black eye the night before…I thank him for his kindness to her…I pray that they have found safer, warmer places to rest…

On the walk to school this morning, a young woman spotted an older gentleman who needs a walking stick and has limited speed…she spoke to him before running ahead to stop the bus for him & asked the driver to wait…the old man got his bus, the young woman continued her walk on her way…I thank her for her kindness…

I am sure that if I think longer, there are more moments of kindness than that, I know there are…fundamentally, people are kind…when they are not, it is usually fear that clouds their judgment and diverts their actions…this is still a beautiful world…stop and look around you…watch people…there will be more kindness, more compassion than you expect…smile at it, let it warm your heart or allow it to draw warm, salty tears to cleanse your sorrow and make way for more joy…and then make a resolve…to be kind…small things…cook your partner’s favourite meal or buy them that offensive smelling cheese they crave…tip double when you go for coffee…pick some litter…smile at someone…

The more small, random acts of kindness in the world, the less time & space for greed and fear to take hold…they don’t have to feel like grand gestures and world-changing actions…but in their own way, that is exactly what they are…

May we all be happy…
May we all be healthy… 
May we all live in peace… 
May we all be free… 
May we all be loved… 
May we all be kind… 
OM x *

P.S. you are now reading this via everydayfolk.blogspot.com and that is the result of yet more kindness @hoodedman_art for connecting me with @14NC on Twitter…I thank you both for your kindness…Let’s spread the love!

* I sign off on my blog  with OMx because I am, after all, simply an Ordinary Mama.  And also because in Yoga, Om is the sound of the Universe, of God, the original sound, the seed of creation and because it is a powerful vibration for peace and for tranquillity of heart & mind. Just in case you wanted to know.

This blog first appeared in a slightly different from at ordinarymamaextraordinaryjoy.  We would like to add some thumbs up to from us to Alex, the paramedics, the man sleeping rough and the young woman at the bus stop

Lucy Barlow, @PortsmouthYoga can be found at the website for yoga portsmouthyoga.co.uk and also blogs at ordinarymamaextraordinaryjoy.wordpress.com/ on mothering through yoga and at pregnancyyogaportsmouth.com/  about pregnancy, birth, breastfeeding & beyond

laughing in the morning, if only

Well I'm pleased that there have been some guest posts lately as I don't seem to have come across as many smiles of late.

I have a theory; I always thought that the sun was going to make a difference to this blog and unfortunately I think I was right.  The occurrences of smiles are definitely becoming less as the tones turn from yellow to grey, the nights draw in and the temperature plummets.

However, they may be less but they are still around and maybe for their rarity, even nicer?
 
Also, it gives me a chance to thank some people who if this blog had been going years ago, I would have posted about them, not least Ken.

In days of yore, (I can never use that word now without thinking of a particular episode of Friends), I had a personal trainer, and that personal trainer was Ken.  Not only did he get me super fit but, and this was the miracle for which he gets many thanks and thumbs up, he would arrive at 6:30 or 7:00am in the morning and get me laughing.

What a wonderful way to start the day and even though it was almost twenty years ago, I still miss those early morning laughs with him and that wonderful feeling of fitness when he left.  (He still sees my mother, lucky her).

And a few thumbs up but no photos - Friday, 15th November - to the workman dealing with the street lights in Lyndale Avenue, NW2 who cheered my day by saying I was the sunshine and to the lady on the bus from Finchley Road to St. John's Wood who helped me by ringing my 'phone when I thought I'd lost it, a huge thank you and .

Meanwhile, I'm sorry to say, a thumbs down to the driver of the Number 82 bus who on Wednesday, 6th November at about 9:30am, just south of Golders Green heading in to town, refused to let an elderly lady off the bus at the front, arguing with her and holding everyone else up for some time for what seemed like spite.  She believed the front step was easier for her to get off than the back step and he insisted that they were the same height.  Even if they are, was it so necessary to shout at her and embarrass her?  You know who you are so, shame on you and "thumbs down".


So, don't forget, Promote the Positive - this blog, www.everdayfolk.blogspot.com is here for you; this is a public pinboard where you can tell us about that great smile, that bit of extra service you encountered in your day which just made the difference or just something nice. Please, send us your posts, comments or just follow.  Thanks.