Walking the streets on days like today, where Mother Nature has completely skipped fall, wind chill attacks you with a vengeance, and the blows force warm tears to caress your cheek, there is only one thought running through your head; “I can’t wait to get home!”. You’re on a mission, not taking a second glance at your surroundings, just thinking about the comfort of your warm bed. However as you were dodging the cold air you didn’t even notice that you passed the next President of The United States…well not really, but it could have been. That small voice that was asking for help as you strutted passed them could have been the next anything; President, famous, athlete, singer etc. Maybe that individual has just been dealt a really bad hand in life and the only thing preventing them from getting the cards they need was for you to stop and offer your help. Whether that consisted of 1 dollar or something of greater value than money, it could have made a difference. All you had to do was turn around.
On a regular day, when Mother Nature doesn’t have it out for us, we have our necks bent and our eyes glued to our phones. Still oblivious to the faces we pass on a daily basis, and while we aren’t paying attention to someone willing us, with every fiber in their body, to just glance in their direction, we miss a chance to make someone’s day better. Those eyes that are trying to compel us could have just been asking for a simple smile, a smile that would have made all the difference in the world to someone suffering.
This past Wednesday I watched a speaker broadcast of Leigh Anne Tuohy with the National Academy of Leadership & Success here at Kutztown. For those who are unsure of who Leigh Anne Tuohy is, she is the woman portrayed in the Academy Award winning movie The Blind Side. She’s a woman who felt the urge to turn around and extend a hand to someone she felt needed it desperately. During her broadcast Touhy urged us to be kind, “Imagine if the 7 or 8 billion people in this world were kind to one another” she said. I can almost feel the difference radiating off those words.
I challenge anyone reading this article to do one random act of kindness a day. That includes giving a dollar to a person in need of it, or showing all 32 teeth to the next pair of eyes you see. You never know who you’re smiling at, and your beautiful smile could change someone’s life.