13 Acts of Community Kindness

I made a post here two weeks ago about being inspired by a group of ladies celebrating their birthdays with not-so-random acts of kindness. Committing one act of kindness for every year you have lived is such a beautiful way to show gratitude and celebrate. Well, my son turns 13 this Sunday and I thought this would be a great exercise in giving for him and an opportunity to get in a little practice for my next birthday by joining him. After all, 13 acts of kindness will be much easier than 45. Again, thank you Michelle from So Wonderful So Marvelous, Robyn from Mix Mingle Glow and Kimberly for getting this chain reaction of kindness going!

First we read our local newspaper's wish list for a list of charities and their most immediate needs:

1- Donated blankets, sheets, and dog bowls to Pals for Pooches. This is a non-profit that provides abused and abandoned canines with medical care and shelter. Animal shelters need bedding to help keep the animals comfortable.
2- Donated books to our new Kingwood Branch Library.
3- Donated school supplies and pantry foods to the Society of St. Stephen. This organization helps families in need and supplies are always needed.
4- Donated board games, curtains and DVD movies to the Village Learning & Achievement Center. They were the most appreciative group - flagging down my car as we were driving off just to get our address to send a nice thank you note.

Borrowing ideas from the bloggers of my inspiration, we accomplished the following:

5- Left our mail carrier an instant win lotto ticket.
6- Returned shopping carts at the grocery store.
7- Picked up litter on the greenbelts.
8- Gave the lawn guys cold bottles of water.
9- Gave some young kids on the street popsicles. On a hot afternoon in July, nothing is more refreshing to a kid playing in the heat than a popsicle!
10- My son wrote thank you notes to his aunt, uncle, & grandparents in appreciation of the time they spent with him this summer. (Sent the old fashioned way via United States Postal Service)

And we threw in a few random acts for kicks

11-Holding the door open for the next person is something my son, Jeffrey, always does. But as we left the thrift store after making a donation, I heard someone say, "Thank You" and I knew that my son was probably holding the door. I turned around and glanced at a lady with her arms full of purchases as she exited and she gave me a big smile as if to say, "How nice. A kid with manners!" LOL.
12- Jeffrey gathered up the neighbors trash cans after pick-up this morning. They left to vacation at Galveston Beach for a few days and we don't want them to receive one of those not-so-friendly neighborhood association notices about leaving an empty trash out can for longer than a day.
13- Jeffrey found the neighbors runaway Dachshund. This isn't a difficult task for him because the dog usually goes to the same locations. But the quicker he is retrieved the sooner he is out of harms way so I felt it was worthy of the mention.

This was so much easier than I thought it would be and a lot fun! I've had 13 wonderful years with this boy and felt good about sharing him and his kindness with others. I hope these acts will be paid forward!