Pay It Forward Friday
You know that feeling that you have during the holidays, or around someone’s birthday, when you get someone a gift and absolutely cannot wait to give it to the person? My sister Kate is infamous for that, I usually start receiving Christmas gifts around October.
Anyways, the reason that you get that feeling is because you are thinking of someone else rather than yourself. You, somewhere along the way, have found a gift that so embodies the recipient or your relationship with the recipient that you feel like you are going to burst out of your skin if you don’t give them the thing, whatever it may be, right then and there. I’m always looking for those kind of “things”. Things that make me think of a certain person immediately; like unicorn salt & pepper shakers or a FO SHIZZLE car air freshener. I like the way it makes me feel to make things for other people, to buy things for other people, and to do things for other people.
What if you could bottle up that feeling and sell it? No need, I’ve got an easy and (most of the time) free way have that feeling every day; it’s called Random Acts Of Kindness (RAOK). A few years back I figured that was the key to feeding my soul without going broke so I made a promise to myself that I would do one random act of kindness a day. When I first started I had a hard time getting one a day but now, I’m an old pro [brushes off shoulder].
Here are a few of my go-to RAOKs:
1. Water a friends plant/ plants or pick someone flowers.
2. Give someone who is lost directions.
3. Put a loose change in a strangers parking meter.
4. Tape a quarter to a candy machine at the grocery store.
5. Clip Box Tops for Education for a local school.
6. Volunteer in the community (just finished my Hospice volunteer training last week!).
7. Make and deliver dinner to someone, just because.
8. Drop a card in the mail to someone I haven’t spoken to in awhile.
9. Pay for someone behind you in line.
10. Bring grocery bags to local dog park for “poop bags”
My BoxTop Collection, almost ready to donate!
Nowadays there is a #hashtag for every day of the week, why not start #PIFF, #PayItForwardFriday? Get out there and RAOK it up, cheers!