What it means to be kind.

By annie Brown

     The world around us is such a lovely place but the great things have a tendency to fall into the shadows of the not so great things. It is so insanely easy for the human brain to see the negativity in what is around us but through kindness and the action of doing kind acts for others, we are able to highlight the positive things! This is going to be a bit different from anything we've published before, but we asked a handful of people what kindness meant to them in the hopes of sharing the positivity that is hidden everywhere. Here is what they said! 

"For me, kindness is giving people a chance before you judge them or treat them differently. Kindness is seeing something good in everyone, even if it's just a small thing. Kindness is trying to understand somebody else's situation before your own. Kindness is a quicker way to make change." -Julia L.

"Kindness to me is treating others how you would want them to treat you. We need kindness because we need smiles, laughter, happiness, love, comfort, and compassion. Kindness equals all of those and more." -Tanner S.

"Kindness means having compassion with someone even if you don’t have it in you to really do it at the time. Kindness also means to respect one another in a mutual manner." -Evie H. 

"Kindness is the action of Love. It’s when we create opportunities to share that love in ways that aren’t always comfortable to us." -Brooks L.

"Kindness to me is doing the right thing even when it's hard." -Baylor B.

"I think of kindness as someone helping another person out when they are in need or using manners or just being a nice person in general." -Garrett P. 

"Kindness means that you treat everyone the best that you can. No matter who they are or how you feel about them you treat them with fairness and respect. You should always treat everybody well and that is what kindness means in my perspective." -Delaney S.

"Kindness is really the absence of malice. It’s not always what someone wants to hear. It’s rarely tangible. It can be tough and direct, but it’s always dispensed with love and pure intentions. It’s the choice one makes from a caring heart, even when it would be easier to choose differently."
​-Cindy Riedl

"Kindness means putting positive thoughts to action. We think of nice things to do and say all day but when we act, that is kindness." -Heather D.

"Kindness to me means making people feel loved. You can be kind in all sorts of different ways, whether it be out of generosity, maybe nice words to brighten someone’s day, or helping out a friend in need. When you show kindness to someone it can make them feel valued and cared for and brighten their day. It can make them happier. When we show kindness we also spread joy."
-Emily M.

"Kindness to me means endless love and positivity spread to all people. Kindness is an amazing energy to spread all around, all of the time." -Emily B.

“Being kind is something that just happens yet at the same time you have to work for. Just be nice. That’s all” -Creed K

"I think kindness is doing what’s best for others even if you will not get the same in return. Kindness is taking the extra step to make someone’s day in either a big or small way."
-Caroline R. 

"To me, kindness is doing something out of your comfort zone to help another person succeed at something." -Jackson P.

"As extremely cliché as this sounds I believe it holds truthful, kindness is one of the few pure sources of light in a dark world, it’s relentless love." -Ian W.

     I share all of these to truly shed light on the wonderful things happening around us every single day. Kindness brings us together. Kindness is love, light, and generosity. So what does kindness mean to you?