Spark Off A Kindness Chain Reaction

I didn't intend to write about kindness and gratitude again, but when coincidences pop up it's best to follow through with what they are indicating.

My wife and I did what we thought of as a kindness for someone. I won't go into details, it's private. I'm only mentioning it as an illustration of how kindness - as with gratitude, smiles, giving and so on - can set off a chain reaction.

A couple of days later we were discussing having our house facia boards, soffits, window frames and gutters (which are all white) cleaned as they were beginning to look a bit grubby. It's quite a job as our house is detached and has high eaves at the side, which are too high for a ladder. So not something I wanted to do myself.

In the meantime one of our sons saw a business van in trouble. It had broken down at the side of the road so he stopped to see if he could help. Being mechanically inclined he actually got their van up and running again. It took him quite a while but he told them he didn't want any money or anything in return. He was just pleased to help.

The two men in the van gave him a card and said if he ever needed anything doing they would be pleased to do him a freebie in return for his help.

He looked at the card and realised they were cleaners, doing all sorts of stuff from car valeting to ... yes, cleaning house facia boards and so on.

So this morning there was an early knock on the door and two men in a van turned up to clean the exterior of our house and all for free - as arranged by our son. As the cliche goes: one good turn deserves another.

Later that day a friend brought us a big box of vegetables she had grown in her garden. Too many for just my wife and I so we passed some on to others - and so the kindness chain reaction continues.

It's so simple to do something for someone else and it's a natural law that what ever we do - good or bad - is returned. When I say this some people - who consider themselves to be a bit spiritually superior - get annoyed and say that we shouldn't give help, money etc. expecting a return.

I actually agree with what they say but the reality is that we will be 're-paid' (the Bible confirms this, if this is your belief) - and in exactly the manner and mind frame in which we gave. Well, that's what I believe anyway.

Try it! Spark off a kindness chain reaction and see where it leads. Oh, and be grateful for what you recieve.

Further Reading:
Gratitude The Sacred Secret And The Law Of Attraction
It's Going To be a Special Day

Kindness Plus Gratitude Equals A Trouble-Free Life

On Monday - see post - I mentioned gratitude, the keeping of a Gratitude Journal and so on. I think most readers to a blog such as this will feel that being grateful is a positive trait which can be beneficial to the individual and perhaps to the larger world as well.

Likewise kindness is also beneficial and, what's more, scientists now agree - well at least some of them do.

There has been a study carried out at the University of Sussex's Mindlab, the research being carried out by psychologist Dr David Lewis.

His findings seem to establish that people who do good deeds, such as helping a neighbour or doing charity work, experience less anger and stress and feel more positive and self confident.

Dr Lewis said, "Being more considerate can reduce stress levels. Effects of stress on the body are well documented: it can suppress the immune system, lead to a rise in blood pressure, increase risk of heart attack and stroke, and contribute to infertility."

The doc's conclusion is: "Therefore to improve our chances of being healthy we should all start doing good to others today."

By coincidence I just read that Harvard University have shown that helping others also makes us mentally tougher and physically stronger. Problem is that they have also shown here that evil deeds improve physical performance as well. Though they did conclude, "Helping others may be the best way of regaining control of your own life."

Personally I feel that kindness works wonders in a positive way. Though we should probably show kindness without the thought of any reward or return I believe that the old adage about what we give we also receive is true.

Even if we don't necessarily believe this there can be no denying that when we do something good for others it makes us feel good and this is, therefore, very uplifting.

I know people who do random acts of kindness and reckon it has improved their lives no end.

I guess the thing about kindness is that it doesn't have to cost money. It can be a smile, a compliment, a helping hand, flowers or fruit from your garden and a myriad of other things.

Once we start showing kindness (and gratitude) it sets off a chain reaction. I mentioned something along these lines in my post Miles Of Smiles And Butterflies.

Whether wanting spiritual enlightenment or simply a happier more trouble-free life I would say that gratitude and kindness are two essentials.

Further Reading:
Gratitude The Sacred Secret And The Law Of Attraction
Seed Money Brings A Tenfold return
A Woman In a Yellow Dress Reminds Me What Happiness Is All About

Gratitude The Sacred Secret And The Law Of Attraction

A personal coincidence story today. In the 80s I was a manager of a finance company and had a very personable assistant, Ian.

I would describe Ian as a free spirit and we had a great working relationship. It was a fun time to actually go to work. Unfortunately for me Ian decided to move on to fresh pastures and eventually moved to Australia. Occasionally he would be back in England and would pop in to see me and my wife.

He was always full of enthusiasm and had some sort of new project and experience to follow. He would then fade away from the scene and move on to live in other countries: Sweden, India, Cyprus, USA. When in the UK we sometimes saw him for an update on his life. At times I almost felt quite envious.

We haven't seen Ian now for quite a few years and on our walk yesterday I said to my wife, "I wonder what happened to Ian, wonder where he is in the world and what he's doing."

We chatted about Ian and then moved on to something else.

Out of the blue, today, I received the card below from Ian. He's living in Australia and is now a home business coach and trainer.


As you will see the theme of his message is all about gratitude. It's something that followers of the Law of Attraction often emphasise. In Jack Canfield's book The Key To Living The Law Of Attraction he writes:

"The best attitude you can possibly aspire to is one of gratitude ... being truly grateful for what is already present in your life will automatically and effortlessly attract more good into your life. Make a conscious decision to appreciate and acknowledge all that you have already been blessed with ..."

The book goes on to suggest that readers should start a Gratitude Journal, which is what Ian seems to be doing.

As is often the way in life, once you have a theme being directed at you coincidences pop up - in this case about being grateful.

I opened up a book just now which belonged to my best friend, He died and his wife gave me a few of his books. This was one I hadn't read. The page in front of me was about Meditation and Gratitude and read:

"Now, here is the real mystery of gratitude - it opens your soul and heart, it takes the toil out of labour, turns compulsion to willingness, transforms obligation to lovingness; it is unlocking of the spirit, a freedom from guilt, and opening of your consciousness as a faciliating function in every day matters. It is the sacred secret ..."

The book* goes on to tell of other benefits of meditation and gratitude combined.

All of this fits together pesonally: talking about Ian, recieving the card from him, looking again at the Law of Attraction, opening my friend's book to a page about gratitude.

I interpret all this as a personal message - so think I'd better take heed!

I'm sure that many of us don't always express our gratitude, for so many aspects of life, as perhaps we should.

Further Reading:
The Law Of Attraction Powered By Visualisation
How A Prayer Was Answered

*The book mentioned is called The Magic Road and is a publication of The Seekers Trust.