Kindness is everything

I do think we can all be kind. However, its not the matter on if we can do it, it is more of if we want to do it. Many people find the pleasure in helping someone out or doing something out of the goodness of their heart. Kindness has been a backbone of our society from day 1. Kindness is what binds us together; it is what keeps us human during hard times. “The original meaning of kindness is kinship or sameness” (pg. 6). This means that there is no difference between two people during an act of kindness; there is no racial or social barrier. We are like brothers and sisters. As one of the 10 Commandments states “Love thy neighbor as thyself.” This means to treat everyone with the love and kindness, as we want to be treated. If we followed these two meanings of kindness, I believe society would be a much better place to live in. I know myself personally that it is hard at times to act in kindness. Take an enemy for instance. It is much easier to hate the enemy than to love him. I must swallow my pride and treat the person with the same amount of kindness and respect, as I would want to be treated. I feel that kindness comes down to the golden rule “Treat others as you would want to be treated”. I find it interesting that “we are never as kind as we want to be, but nothing out rages us more than people being unkind to us” (pg. 10). It is a two way street when dealing with kindness. We must prioritize the needs of others rather than ourself.

Kindness in the modern society is shaped in a different way. We are so sensitive to the thought of being helped that majority of the time we refuse it. Our vulnerability is what shuts us away from an honest act of kindness. Are we too ashamed to show someone that we may need help? I feel it doesn’t help with people now stating the idea of feminism and the ability to do acts on our own. There are times where I do feel that I can do everything on my own and that I do not need a man to help me. However, I feel at times that accepting a man’s kindness of opening a door or helping me too my car is the proper thing to do. Is our vulnerability shaping society to become distant from the thought of a kind act or is it the idea of someone helping scary to accept. I see this happen all the time during Kid’s Club. I do not help these students because it is my duty. I help these students because I care and want them to succeed. When I go around and offer my help to students I see struggling, they become distant and closed off. Some of them even get red in the face. They shyly say yes or they just look away. The vulnerability of these students is high and is actually hindering them from the opportunity to learn. I wish I could teach them “we [all] depend on each other not just for our survival, but for our very being ”(pg.95) and that at times the simple acceptance of a kind act “is what helps keep us sane and human” (pg. 96).

So yes, do I feel that we can all be kind and yes, we can acknowledge our own personal vulnerabilities because a simple, kind act can go a long way in a person’s life.