Kindness Suggestion
A NOTE from the
Editor: Most likely you have seen
the following Kindness Suggestion already.
It’s certainly visited my inbox a number of times. But until I could verify the information I
did not want to put it in SFPNN. Having
checked several resources I feel I can comfortably include it as a Kindness
Suggestion. And, as we have a global
readership, I would like to ask you to broaden its meaning to include every
service man and woman from every country who is serving from their heart with
the inner belief they are doing the best thing possible.
When we realize our commonalities, that we all want peace,
love, health, joy and freedom for ourselves and our families, the world becomes
our playground instead of a battlefield.
Change takes place first within the heart. We may not always agree on how it is effected in the world, but we can all agree that it takes a
lot of courage to serve your country.
And we are grateful for those who do.
WEAR RED ON FRIDAYS
A.K.A Will You Give This to My
Daddy?
Last week I was in
Moving through the terminal was a group of soldiers in their
camos. As they began heading to their gate, everyone
(well almost everyone) was abruptly on their feet with their hands waving and
cheering.
When I saw the soldiers, probably 30-40 of them, being
applauded and cheered for, it hit me. I'm not alone. I'm not the only
red-blooded American who still loves this country and supports our troops and
their families.
Of course I immediately stopped and began clapping for these
young unsung heroes who are putting their lives on the line everyday for us so
we can go to school, work and home without fear or reprisal.
Just when I thought I could not be more proud of my country
or of our service men and women, a young girl, not more than 6 or 7 years old
ran up to one of the male soldiers. He kneeled down and said "hi."
The little girl then asked him if he would give something to
her daddy for her.
The young soldier, who didn't look any older than maybe 22 himself, said he would try. What did she want
to give to her daddy? Then suddenly the little girl grabbed the neck of this
soldier, gave him the biggest hug she could muster and then kissed him on the
cheek.
The mother of the little girl, who said her daughter's name
was Courtney, told the young soldier that her husband was a Marine and had been
in
When this temporarily single mom was done explaining her
situation, all of the soldiers huddled together for a brief second. Then one of
the other servicemen pulled out a military-looking walkie-talkie. They started
playing with the device and talking back and forth on it.
After about 10-15 seconds of this, the young soldier walked
back over to Courtney, bent down and said this to her, "I spoke to your
daddy and he told me to give this to you." He then hugged this little girl
that he had just met and gave her a kiss on the cheek. He finished by saying
"your daddy told me to tell you that he loves you more than anything and
he is coming home very soon."
The mom at this point was crying almost uncontrollably and
as the young soldier stood to his feet, he saluted Courtney and her mom. I was
standing no more than 6 feet away from this entire event.
As the soldiers began to leave, heading towards their gate,
people resumed their applause. As I stood there applauding and looked around,
there were very few dry eyes, including my own. That young soldier in one last
act of selflessness, turned around and blew a kiss to
Courtney with a tear rolling down his cheek.
We need to remember everyday all of our soldiers and their
families and thank God for them and their sacrifices. At the end of the day,
it's good to be an American.
WEAR RED ON FRIDAYS
Very soon, you will see a great many people wearing Red
every Friday. The reason? Americans and Canadians who
support their troops used to be called the "silent majority". We are
no longer silent, and are voicing our love for God, country and home in record
breaking numbers.
We are not organized, boisterous or over-bearing. . We get
no media coverage on TV to reflect our message or our opinions. Many citizens,
like you, me and all our friends, simply want to recognize that the vast
majority of people support our troops.
Our idea of showing solidarity and support for our troops
with dignity and respect continues each and every Friday until the troops all
come home.
By word of mouth, the press, or TV, let's make a sea of red
every Friday, much like a homecoming football game in the bleachers.
If every one of us who loves their country will share this
with acquaintances, co-workers, friends, and family, it will not be long before
the country is covered in RED. It will
let our troops know the once "silent" majority is on their side more
than ever; certainly more than the media lets on.
The first thing a soldier says when asked “What can we do to
make things better for you?" is...”We need your support and your prayers.”
Let's get the word out and lead with class and dignity, by example; and wear
something red every Friday.
Note: Southwest Airlines is going to support "Red
Fridays." For more information,
please visit:
http://www.blogsouthwest.com/2007/04/09/supporting-our-southwest-troops/
— For more Kindness: http://www.sfpnn.com/kindness_suggestion.htm
TAKE THE SFPNN KINDNESS CHALLENGE!
Living through the words of Gandhi, we
must be the change we want to see in the world.
We must also acknowledge those who are in the act of creating those
changes. Therefore, we have two
challenges for you.
Kindness
Challenge # 1: Do something kind today and every day. It doesn’t have to be of earth-shattering
proportions to make a positive difference.
Simply saying “Thank You” or letting someone know they’re appreciated
can have a tremendous impact. Find
little ways to be kind and to make our world a kinder place. And feel free to tell us about your kind act!
E-mail: “KINDNESS”
Kindness
Challenge # 2: Share something kind someone has done for
you! People are kind to us in a myriad
of ways on a daily basis. But we often
overlook their kindness. Become aware of
acts of kindness and acknowledge the person performing them. Then share their kind gesture with
SFPNN.
E-mail: “KINDNESS”
For more Kindness Suggestions: http://www.sfpnn.com/kindness_suggestion.htm