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Kindness is not a sign of weakness. It is a display of strength that requires courage and emotional resilience.

You do not have to abandon your rights or your morals to demonstrate kindness.

Kindness is mistakenly seen as a sign of weakness because it can be associated with letting others take advantage of you and being turned into a welcome mat for everyone else to walk on.

Kindness needs to have boundaries. Be honest about your needs and limits. You cannot pour from an empty cup or fell a tree with a dull saw.

Never, ever, feel uncomfortable asserting your values and standing up for what you believe in. Cast not your pearls before swine. Do not let people abuse your kindness and take too deeply from your reserves. Do not let people treat you badly and say nothing. Do not devalue yourself and the gift of your kindness.

Kindness protects our vulnerable populations from forces that are threatening them. It combats loneliness and alienation. It puts a bounce back in someone’s step. It might even save someone’s life. Kindness shows a person that they are valued, respected, and accepted.

Jack Canfield said, “Practice random acts of kindness and senseless acts of beauty.” Many acts of kindness cost nothing in money and very little in time commitment. Hold a door open for someone, give a genuine compliment, make eye contact and smile at people passing by, take a lost item to the lost and found, or even watch your neighbors’ kids for a short while so they can get something done.

With a little more time investment you could donate blood, volunteer at a nonprofit, visit an elderly friend and so many other ways to make a difference locally.

Feeding kindness into our community affects more than ourselves and comes back tenfold. When people receive acts of kindness, they are more likely to mirror that kindness to others they interact with. In parting, I remind of the famous words from John F. Kennedy, “Ask not what your country can do for you. Ask what you can do for your country.” What could it hurt?

Bethany Greiner
Albert Lea