Imagine this: you are just going about your day–doing your morning commute, walking to class, etc.–when all of a sudden, you witness an act of love that makes you smile. Has this ever happened to you? It’s happened to me a few times, and it’s always these little moments that brighten my day and keep me going, and I know others feel the same way. Last February, The New York Times published an article right before Valentine’s Day titled “Witnessing Kindness and Love in Unexpected Places,” where they asked readers to share these moments, and published the most uplifting ones. I loved this idea, and found myself smiling through each story. Here are some of mine.
The Best (Zoom) Birthday Party
One heart-warming “quarantine moment” I witnessed was my grandmother’s surprise birthday party back in April of 2020. She is a member of my hometown’s art guild, where she has made some of her best friends. But as soon as the lockdown was announced, the group could no longer meet in-person to paint together, especially since most of the members were seniors. I imagine this was hard for many of them. When my grandmother’s birthday rolled around in April, all of her art guild friends (seniors, mind you) logged onto a Zoom meeting to host a virtual celebration. My mom, who planned the whole thing, showed my grandmother the laptop with rows of smiling faces. Seeing her friends’ effort and love despite everything going on made me smile, too.
A Helping Hand
Last summer, my church hosted a picnic at a park near Boston for college students and their friends. It was a great turnout. The sun was shining, the sky was clear, the park was packed, and hearts (and stomachs) were full. There was even a volleyball net set up. It was all fun and games (literally) until our college pastor slipped and fell while trying to hit the volleyball. As soon as others noticed him lying on the ground in pain, my boyfriend and his best friend rushed over to help, comforting him and holding his hands. After about 10 minutes, he was able to get up and limp, both arms hanging over the two friends’ shoulders. The rest of us watched as the three of them made their way down, slowly but surely, to a spot where my pastor could sit. One of the friends then drove from the park to buy an ice bag for his ankle. My pastor later joked about my boyfriend, saying, “He held my hand. I hope you’re jealous.”
Cough Syrup, Salt, and a Good Friend
A few months ago, I experienced the worst flu I have ever had in my life. I had aches and pains all over, ate Campbell’s soup for weeks, and tossed and turned all night. The most annoying part was the dry cough that just wouldn’t go away. One day, I ran out of cough medicine, and I didn’t have salt with me in my suite to gargle with, either. I texted a friend who lives about 10 minutes away, asking if she wouldn’t mind driving over to bring something to ease the pain. As soon as I was ready to head out the door, she was already there, smiling, a container of salt and cough medicine in hand.
Hidden Messages
My boyfriend and I share our digital calendars with each other to make planning dates easier, or just to see what the other person is up to. Occasionally, I’ll click the box to show his calendar, and to my surprise, find a hidden message among all his classes, clubs, and work shifts. The day I was going to give a speech in class, which I was pretty nervous about, I clicked the box and found a short message that instantly made me smile, an event from 8:30-9:30am reading “Good luck with your speech.”
Sometimes, it’s the little things that can make the biggest difference. This Valentine’s Day, I encourage you to be on the lookup for one of these random acts of affection in your life. Even better, be that person to show love to others, even if all you do is join a Zoom meeting or write a good luck message on Google Calendar.