National Random Acts of Kindness Day, Feb. 17. All over the world, people showed random acts of kindness to their friends and family. In today’s society, people aren’t very kind or courteous to one another. This day reminds us to be kind to each other and to show that we care about people and their lives.
Random Acts of Kindness Day, or RAK Day, originated in New Zealand and was founded by Josh de Jong. He was stuck in traffic one afternoon and watched some drivers ahead of him getting into a bit of a fight. He began to think what would it be like if on one day every one in New Zealand was kind to a stranger. And thus the national day was born. In New Zealand, the day takes place on Sept. 1, but in the U.S. it takes place on Feb. 17.
There are many people who have given or received random acts of kindness from others. Kyle Friesen, ’19, has received a random act of kindness before and it has taken an impact on him.
“My neighbor once gave me family tickets to a football game,” Friesen said. “That was a random act of kindness given to me. I might not give a random act of kindness but I’ll try to be more kind in general.”
People show acts of kindness not just because something or someone tells them to, but because it makes someone else happy. Amanda Grimmius, ’19, has given an act of kindness to someone and it made her feel special to give something to someone in need.
“People come up to me randomly just to compliment me, or tell me something nice,” Grimmius said. “It puts me in a good mood the rest of the day. I will absolutely show a random act of kindness to someone because I feel really good after. I like to make other people feel good.”
When people try to show acts of kindness, they get flustered and embarrassed at times because they don’t know what to say or do at the right time. Sophomore Tyler Villines likes to give others gifts of kindness as well, but is troubled when it comes to the situation in which to do it in.
“One time the car in front of me bought me my lunch at Wendy’s when I went through the drive thru,” Villines said. “I’m planning to pass on that kindness to someone else but I’m not sure when or where. It should be a spur of the moment kind of thing.”
Junior Dana Kwon loves to help others, such as her brother. She even likes to help strangers when they look like they are in need. She tries to do the best she can in helping the less fortunate.
“I love to help other people,” Kwon said. “I once helped an older woman who worked really hard in the winter. I remember it was really cold at that time. I came to her and gave her my gloves and bought her hot tea. I felt happy and good because she got a little warmth from me.”
The Random Acts of Kindness Foundation is a website that is full of inspirational quotes, random acts of kindness, and fulfilling stories of people who have been given hope. At the foundation, their goal is to show people that the strongest emotion in the heart is love and that kindness is the remedy to all the bad stuff in this world.
To get involved with random acts of kindness and to make this world a kinder place, click this link: Random Acts of Kindness.
