Kindness is letting others have a moment of peace even at your expense just to make the world easier for all to coexist. It’s all about compassion and consideration for the feeling of others. Some, through an act of kindness, have been visited by angels; others have come into great fortune just by being kind. Kindness doesn’t cost anything, but the impact can be very great.
Here is a true life story to buttress the effect of kindness. Some years back in Philadelphia, an elderly couple entered the lobby of a small hotel to get away from the rain on one stormy night. They approached the front desk hoping to get some shelter for the night, unfortunately, the hotel was fully booked because there were three conventions in town. The clerk, a friendly man, looked at the couple and said, “I can’t send a nice couple like you out into the rain at one o’ clock in the morning. Would you perhaps be willing to sleep in my room? It’s not exactly a suite, but it will be good enough to make you folks comfortable for the night.” When the couple declined, the young man pressed on until the couple agreed. The following morning, the elderly man said to the clerk, “You are the kind of manager who should be the boss of the best hotel in the United States. Maybe someday I will build one for you.” The clerk looked at them and smiled. Two years later, after he had forgotten about the incident, the clerk received a letter from the old man asking him to pay them a visit. The old man met him in New York, and led him to the corner of Fifth Avenue and 34th street. He then pointed to a great new building there: “That is the hotel I have just built for you to manage.” The older man’s name was William Waldorf Astor, and the magnificent structure was the original Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. The young clerk was George C. Boldt- the manager of one of the world’s most glamorous hotels.
Life is not about you and how wealthy you are, but the lives you touched and the special moments you created for others. Kindness creates an atmosphere for people to thrive and be the best they can possibly be. According to a wise saying: “As the sun melts ice, so kindness causes hatred and hostility to evaporate.” Let’s be kind hearted one to another, and make the world a better place for everyone.
“Kindness makes you the most beautiful person in the world no matter what you look like.” – Unknown
“Kindness is a language that the deaf can hear and the blind can see”- Mark Twain.
Every day of your life is an opportunity to show kindness. Embrace such occasions.
Excerpts
Chris E. Kwakpovwe-Our daily manna- Oct-Dec, 2012.
