What Ever Happened to Kindness?

What Ever Happened to Kindness?

         What IS kindness? Kind-ness, "the state of being kind." What is kind? Do we really know how to define it - do we really want to?
         I have found that we often choose, sometimes unconsciously, but sometimes consciously, to leave in oblivion those ideas or concepts that would require our attention, or heaven forbid, our action. Sometimes it is simply an unbalanced checkbook or an unopened bill; other times it is a forgotten birthday or a skipped dental appointment. Although not left unforgotten for too long, they do allow us a temporary reprieve from the must-do's of our life.
         Likewise, we also allow our values to slip into that same state of oblivion as the unopened bills and forgotten appointments. We know that we should stand up and give our seat to the elderly person who just walked into the waiting room; and we feel that slight nudging to allow the man on crutches to go in front of us in line at the grocery store - BUT WE DON'T.
         We don't call our co-worker who has been out sick with the flu for a few days. We don't urge our children to say "thank you" to the bank teller for the free lollipop. We don't even make eye contact with the waitress when she refills our water, let alone thank her. WE JUST DON'T.
         Has kindness lost its validity in today's modern and advanced world? Is it no longer a sign of proper rearing and good education?
         Or is it simply that we have become so self-absorbed that we cannot, or choose no,t to see beyond the end of our noses to really SEE others? Yet we DO look beyond our noses to see the latest fashions, the newest toys and even the most popular musicians to make sure we keep up with "the Joneses." In fact, we also see beyond our noses to notice, and even criticize or minimize, those who are different from us or do not measure up to our expectations, be it someone whose hair cut is old-fashioned, someone who does not frequent all the "popular" restaurants and stores, or someone who simply looks, dresses or sounds different than us.
         So how is it then, that we cannot, or choose not, to look beyond ourselves in order to show kindness to others? What has brought us to this decision? And, YES, it IS a decision. But better yet, what can we DO about it? What will it take for us to exercise kindness with others, with someone, with just ANYONE? Where will we start?

Let us begin AT HOME!