
Kindness day
We need one official day to remind us to be kind? Certainly yes, because in this world so hasty and sometimes aggressive and distant, stopping to think about the importance of kindness can only do us good. The The 13th November and the World Day of Kindness, born in Japan in 1988 on the initiative of the Japan Small Kindness Movement, and embraced in many other countries in 1997 thanks to the global movement World Kindness Movement which promotes kindness around the world. So today we want to push all of you who read (and also us who write) to ask ourselves what kindness really is and what profound implications a simple kind act can have towards others. An important lesson in which to involve our children too, because, as Seneca wrote, "Wherever there is a human being, there is the possibility for a kindness."
Kindness day 2022
All over the world this anniversary is celebrated in different ways, with flash mobs, conferences, but also practical actions and many events organized in the country and in Europe cover the whole week.
Initiatives for the day of kindness
Here is a selection of the appointments expected in the country.
- A San Severo, in the province of Foggia, there will be meetings, debates and events in the name of courtesy, such as an aperitif with readings on kindness. During the day the shops participating in the day will display posters that recall the themes of kindness and will offer sweets and hugs
- A Garlasco Maria Gabriela González, one of the three Ambassadors of Kindness (for the province of Pavia) appointed by the World Kindness Movement through the representative of the village, will visit the structures involved in the campaign "We take care of the person at 360 degrees. We welcome with kindness".
- A Lecco, the ASST adheres to the National Day of Kindness at the Mandic Hospital of Merate in close collaboration with the Municipality of Carnate. During this special day, municipal operators will encourage citizens and users who access the Mandic to carry out actions and activities aimed at promoting good education and kindness.
Kindness day
is always a precious source of inexhaustible resources and ideas to celebrate the most important anniversaries with perfect jobs and activities to do at school and in the classroom. In the section dedicated to the Day of kindness you will find numerous tutorial and templates to print and cut out as:
- the bookmarks of kindness with precious little words printed on it (Thank you, I'm sorry, Count on Me, Forgive me);
- Poems and nursery rhymes about kindness;
- Sentences;
- didactic cards with games, cross-puzzles and themed exercises.
Kindness day at school
On November 13 the teachers will be able to offer the children various activities to do in the classroom. Taking the opportunity of the Day of Kindness they will be able to think about workshops, readings, but also concrete actions to sensitize pupils on this very important issue.
The little ones can have fun with educational cards, games and activities while the older ones can be asked to make a kind gesture towards a friend. Alternatively, you can take turns to compose a collage of kindness: each student will indicate a kind action for the benefit of the whole community.
Read also: The piggy bank of kindnessActivities for children
Let's face it: in our hectic and stressful days full of practical commitments we don't always manage to focus on small and big gestures of kindness. And for this the 13th November it becomes important, because it somehow forces us to one personal reflectionee motivates us to practice those famous "haphazard acts of kindness": Give up your seat on the bus or the one in line at the supermarket, say thank you and jump with a smile, help anyone who seems in difficulty (from new mothers with pushchairs to ladies with heavy shopping bags) etc ...
And we can involve our children on this special day with simple actions:
- we make a declaration of kindness to a friend, grandmother, or neighbor in need;
- we give books, food and clothing to other members of the community
- let's promise ourselves to perform at least 3 gestures of kindness during the day.
If you want ideas and suggestions for organizing activities for children, we recommend that you take a look at the Monsters of Kindness website, in which Geronimo Stilton presents an initiative that has one major goal: to make the world better, one gesture at a time. On the site we will find many activities, ideas and materials to discover the power of kindness, at school or with the family, and prepare a special appointment for November 13th. And always on the site you can download the Little Book of Kindness, a monstrously funny story to start discovering the power of kindness with Geronimo Stilton.
The value of kindness
Experts explain the immense value of this virtue and how its practice can change the perception of everyday life and instill a deep sense of well-being.
- Being kind is good for your health
Those who are kind take shelter, at least in part, come on risks related to cardiovascular diseases. It has been shown by various scientific studies that a nervous and irascible attitude is harmful to health, since it generates a continuous state of stress that in the long run damages the human body. Instead, kindness generates calm, and ensures that the body is not subjected to violent and harmful stimuli, keeping itself relaxed and healthy, and therefore more prone to good mood.
- Kindness breeds kindness
If you are nice, others will be nice to you. This is certain, or at least very probable. Because a positive cycle is created whereby a kind gesture can only give rise to a kind reaction. This turn is fundamental above all in societies such as the Western one, where relational ties are from time to time more superficial and constructed, to the detriment of spontaneity and authenticity. If the person to whom one speaks kindly normally is sgarbata, she will find herself disoriented in front of an unexpected kindness, and she will be led to reflect. Of course it doesn't always happen, but in a good percentage of cases yes, that's why it's good to practice kindness, because there is nothing to lose, indeed. Dealing with the world and the neighbor with kindness gives us peace of mind and makes the other willing to be towards us: kindness begets kindness
- The importance of a smile
Being kind predisposes us to a positive attitudejust like smiling. What may seem like a simple detail is actually a precious ally for pleasant and effective communication.
In fact, the smile is the tool we have at our disposal to communicate immediately and without the need for words which one is our predisposition towards the other. It is a sign of openness and availability, and has the great power to give positivity at no cost to someone who may need it. Consequently, we will be the first to benefit from this gratitude, and the pleasure and sense of fulfillment that flow from it are a precious asset.
- The importance of giving for free
Being generous without thinking that you will receive something in return is a great virtue. Giving for the pleasure of giving and without the anxiety of receiving, without always thinking about one's own advantage, makes us better people, with others but above all with ourselves. Any act we decide to perform, any attitude we assume, has first of all consequences on our being. Performing acts of kindness is giving to others without expecting anything in return, and if practiced sincerely and consciously, it is the best way to grow internally and cultivate one's deepest well-being.
- Altruism vs individualism
La sensitivity towards others is what trains when we are kind a priori. A faculty that should be exercised from an early age, and which often fades over the years, due to what one experiences and suffers, of violent and incorrect abuse and dynamics of which one is the protagonist on a daily basis. Recover a pure look and a good disposition towards others will allow us to open our eyes and discover that around us there are infinite examples of daily kindness that we can put into practice: hold the door to those who are arriving, help an elderly person who is loaded with burdens, give way on the bus to those who need it most or let those who have only one product pass in the queue while we have a full cart, ask "how are you?" say "good morning" and "good evening", "thank you" and "don't worry!". Small gestures that are not due but which become necessary if what we want is a better society and altruistic.
- Awareness of the power of kindness, inner change
Let's now try to answer: why not be kind? What do you earn? The answer is simple: nothing. Yet often we fall into the mechanisms of rudeness, we lose patience, and we are not very available to those in front of us. Everyone has their own reasons for answering badly or being grumpy by picking on a stranger, but what does this attitude lead us to? The real step forward is learn to manage negative feelings such as anger and envy, don't let them gain space and prevent them from settling inside us. Unhinging this belief system is the inner change to be pursued, being the first to be the improvement we want for the world. And we will be happier. Seeing is believing.
And now we leave you with the words of the Nobel Prize Aung San Suu Kyi:
Among the sweetnesses of adversity, and let me say that they have been numerous, I have found the sweetest, the most precious of all, it is the lesson I have learned about the value of kindness. Every kindness received, large or small, has convinced me that there will never be enough of it in our world. being kind means responding with sensitivity and human warmth to the hopes and needs of others. Even the smallest gesture of kindness can light up a bad heart. Kindness can change people's lives.