Random Acts of Kindness Challenge (Be a Day Maker)

If you’ve ever met me, it’s no secret that I care about community service. I’m all about doing what you can to help other people, because you truly never know what is going on in any one else’s life. You could be the difference in turning someone else’s life around. Maybe you won’t have that dramatic of an effect every time. But just opening the door for someone else or smiling at a stranger could brighten his or her day. You could be a day maker.

So I rarely ask for favors, but this one is pretty important to me. My birthday’s coming up. What comes to your mind when you think of birthdays? Cake. Presents. Friends. Family parties. Silly hats. Candles in the shapes of numbers. Maybe for some: dread, another year of 29, or perhaps, you forget it’s your birthday. Yeah, I’ve talked to someone who forgot his own birthday. It just so happens he has the same birthday as I do! But we are polar opposites, because I start looking forward to my birthday like six months in advance.

 

But I digress. The point is birthdays are supposed to be fun. They are way to celebrate the fact that you made it through another year on this cool place we like to call planet Earth. I read a book a few months ago called The Perks of Being a Wallflower (You may have seen a post I wrote about it in the past). The main character talks about how he thinks he should give his mom a present every year for bringing him into this world instead of getting presents.

 

So for my birthday I have an idea of what I would like—which is always the hardest part for me. My challenge for you is to do a random act of kindness every day until February 17^th. I’m not saying it has to stop there, and if you get the same feeling I do out of it, it won’t. But remember: it doesn’t have to be something big.

 

Just make a conscious effort every day between now and then to do something nice for someone else. Ideally, these people would be acquaintances or even strangers you encounter on your daily routine. But doing things for friends and family is amazing as well.

 

And one more thing: if on February 17^th I saw comments about what you guys did to make other people’s days (anonymous or otherwise) it just might make my day. J

 

(My first act: I made a poster for my younger step-sister wishing her luck for her solo in her choir concert tonight.)

 

Ideas:

• Make someone in your house breakfast. (Even pouring someone in a  rush a bowl of cereal can be helpful)
• Open the door for someone.
• Smile.
• Offer to help carry something.
• Compliment people. (They’ll eat it up! And you just might get one back.)
• Be observant. (Some people just want to be noticed or want people to notice something specifically).
• Pick up something someone dropped.
• Offer to run an errand for someone.
• Help your parents cook dinner.
• Do the laundry.

 

 

I Can Lift a Car (Part 2)

As I said before, I didn’t give up on humanity just yet. Two bands+ three friends+ one cheeseburger + one best chocolate malt ever + one picture with cute guy from the opening band + dancing as I’m packed in a crowd like a sardine = one of the best nights of my life. I know the math doesn’t seem to add up numerically, but if you realize the weight the sum carries, it makes sense.

At the beginning of last week, I planned to write an entire post about awesomeness of last Friday night. But after the way last week turned out, I’ve changed my mind. Last week sucked. The whole week my motto was “I Can Lift a Car.” Every time I needed a little boost I internally chanted “I Can Lift Car. Did you know… did you know that I can lift a car up all by myself?”

When Walk the Moon did their encore, the lead singer told everyone to take all of the bad stuff from the week and crumple it into a ball. They he told us to throw the ball away and lift up a car. It all started with Monday. But I don’t want to talk about it. It wasn’t a bad case of the Mondays or anything. In case you didn’t realize, Mondays are 1/7 of our lives. I’ve learned to live with them.

It doesn’t totally go with it the lyrics, but listen to the song “Iscariot” by Walk the Moon. It goes with the start of my bad week. I listened to it on repeat, and it actually made me feel better. I just kept thinking “Iscariot, you fool.” And sometimes it was directed toward myself. I was mad at someone else, but what’s worse is I was angrier at myself.

The song is about betrayal, likely referencing Judas Iscariot who betrayed Jesus. It says “You can’t trust just anyone.” But that’s part of what brought me back to “I Can Lift a Car.” It’s like saying “I don’t need anyone else’s help, because I can get through this by myself.”

This doesn’t mean I’m deeming myself to a life of loneliness—though I did threaten to become a nun at some point last week. But I realized now more than ever that even simple struggles make us stronger people. Through heart ache, through pressure, through betrayal, we can become better people.

And while overcoming finals week, finishing the first half of senior year, and almost making the biggest decision of my life, I had to remember that everything will be ok, because I can lift a car.

Struggling? First, listen to “I Can Lift a Car.” Second, listen to “Float” by Pacific Air. The first will make you feel empowered; the second will make you feel at ease.

And one more thing, never under estimate the power of a little chocolate therapy.   

I Can Lift a Car (Part 1)

Do you ever have those days with so many consecutive unfortunate occurrences that you stop believing the day could get better? Those days where everything goes wrong. And you start to wonder what you did to deserve it, but at the end of the day, it doesn’t really matter, does it? We want answers to anything and everything; we’re curious by nature. While it might be comforting to be all-knowing, it isn’t why it happens that matters; it’s what we do with what it is that matters.

My afternoon started with the gas pump sticking and gasoline pouring all over the ground/on my car. So I run inside explaining I’ve already paid, but the gas spilled and I don’t even know what just happened. Luckily the guy was super understanding about it, and even gave me a code for a carwash to clean it up. But after sitting in the line, I realize the person in front of me is struggling to get on the track. The car starts jumping around trying to get its front wheel over, and pretty soon it’s in the actual wash part diagonally. After a few moments, I realize the driver has no idea what to do; the lady behind me is texting as I try to get her attention, and I can’t get out of my car. Thank God for technology, I looked up the phone number to the gas station and told them what happened.

“This is Kyle, how can I help you?”

Real reply: “Hi, Kyle. The person in front of me couldn’t get on the track, and is now stuck in the car wash.”

In my head: Hi, Kyle. I’ve just given up all hope on humanity as the middle-aged woman in front of me just spun out in a car wash. I know, I know, it can be difficult to get on the track; these things are tough—not that tough.

“I’ll be right out,” the voice at the other end of the conversation replies, nonchalantly.

Yeah, no big deal. I’M JUST STUCK IN THE CARWASH.

Finally, the lady two cars behind me gets out to see what’s going on, because apparently Kyle didn’t know how to fix it by himself and we’re still sitting there. So I explain I have to leave, and five cars behind me have to back up, so I can get out.

Frazzled and late, I rushed home to get ready for my night of adventure. I’ll leave you with this: I didn’t give up on humanity just yet. I knew there was still hope. And little did I know, I was about to have one of the best nights of my life. One that had me throwing all of the bad crap from the week away, and shouting “I can lift a car.”

To be continued.