The movie is about a young boy who did 3 good deeds for others in need. All the child wanted in return was for them to pass on the good deed to three other people so that the practice of helping one another could spread exponentially. Thus, creating a conscious social movement that could impact with making the world a better place.
I remember watching this movie when it first came out in 2000 and was so moved by its message. I also remember definitely being inspired to pay it forward to others and I’m sure I did (exactly what I did I can’t recall because it was 12 years ago). And then it dawned on me just now (as my fingers are quickly touching the keypad to express my thoughts onto the screen) that it was that long ago! The question that pondered in my head was “How often have I done random acts of kindness for people since then?” I mean, I know I have definitely given food and money to several homeless people standing by an exit of a freeway but how about other strangers I’ve come across? Have I really gone out of my way to help in a meaningful way to strangers that has created such an impact in their lives that has inspired them to also pay it forward to others? I honestly don’t know.
Sure, I’ve inspired several people and have actually moved them in some way that has impacted their lives but I truthfully don’t know when the last time I did a random act of kindness to a stranger that possibly moved them in the sense that they would want to spread the joy to other strangers too. Well I think it’s time I do!
Often times, we get so caught up in our own lives that the true meaning behind “paying it forward” can be but a faint, distant whisper in the breeze. Too often the phrase gets tossed around and used so loosely that some people don’t even know what the term even represents anymore. And sometimes the act of being kind can get buried beneath our own issues that we feel we have nothing more to give. We become too overwhelmed with our own lives, our own families, our own kids…too tired, too stressed out, too much in a hurry to be present. Present to the fact that when we give freely from our hearts, how much more we truly receive in our own lives…just the feeling of giving is so rewarding. But trust me, I get it. Sometimes we have to do what we have to do in order to take care of our our own lives and nurture self-love and self-care. But in times when we CAN give back - it can put a smile not only on someone else’s face but our own, it can decrease the stress and overwhelm that we feel as parents, and can even attract more ease and happiness in our lives.
And an even more gratifying feeling is knowing that when we model this to our children, we get the opportunity to show them another wonderful way to become compassionate and unconditionally loving towards others. Wow! Talk about bringing a whole new level of awareness to the phrase, right?!
When we do random acts of kindness, it actually shifts our way of thinking, our way of being. Instead of saying to ourselves, “What’s in it for me?”, we start to ask ourselves, “How can I create a little happiness for someone with no strings attached?”
So if you haven’t paid it forward in awhile or would like to do more of it, now is the time. It’s time to move beyond our own “stuff”, our own stories and create a new story to tell. It’s time to find ways to actually give it forward.
What are several simple ways you can start doing this today?
- Pay the highway toll fee for the vehicle behind you.
- Buy food for a homeless person (or participate with an organization to feed the homeless).
- Give a warm jacket or blanket to a homeless person.
- Put money in someone’s parking meter that is about to expire.
- Pay for someone’s food behind you in line.
- Bake some goodies for a new neighbor or any neighbor for that matter!
- Let the person in line behind you go before you at the cash register.
- Volunteer at a non-profit organization that helps the needy
- Support a good cause either financially or physically
- Visit an ill patient at a hospice
- Volunteer at an elderly home or an animal shelter
- Offer to baby sit for a family
- Make a meal or help clean for a family who recently had a baby
- Loan something to someone and don’t ask for it back
- Put money in a street performer’s jar
- Spend time with children at an orphanage
- Donate clothes, toys, books to a shelter for battered women and children during the holidays and/or anytime of the year
- Be a mentor
- Invite the less fortunate over for dinner during the holidays (or anytime for that matter)
- Donate time/money/energy towards a fundraiser for a school
- Give your services pro bono
- Help grow a community garden
- Donate your hair to Locks of Love or other organizations that make wigs for people who need it
- Plant a tree or clean up garbage at a park or the beach
- Pay for a stranger’s meal at a restaurant
- Pick someone at the bank, post office or grocery store and make a special card with your child and/or buy a gift to give to them
- Give all your recyclables to a homeless person so they can collect the money
- Give a loan to this organization, Kiva that is helping and empowering people around the world
- Get your neighborhood/community to donate toiletries to Children of the Night which helps to keep kids off the streets
- Continue to be present and keep your eyes peeled for anyone you see that looks like they may need a helping hand, i.e. holding the door open for an old lady, helping to carry groceries out for a single mom with kids, etc.
These are just some of the ways that you can give a helping hand. There are many other ways to do it, too. But there is one way that is definitely important and that is spreading the word! If someone wants to thank you and pay you “back”, let them know that you’d prefer for them to pay it “forward” and do something thoughtful for three people they don’t know and then ask those three people to do something thoughtful for three more people and so on. This way it continues to consciously increase unconditional love throughout the world.
Just as Ghandi once said, “Be the change you want to see in the world”. So let’s continue to be the “pebble” in the pond that creates a ripple effect of consciousness!
About Tangee Veloso
Tangee Veloso is the founder of Family Love Village (FLV), the world’s leading conscious community, website and iMagazine called the FLVillage Crier for families passionate about parenting through connection and eco-holistic living. She is also a life coach and author of a conscious parenting book called “Taming Your Wild Child: 7 Proven Principles for Raising Connected and Confident Children!”
Her commitment in creating a supportive forum and a conscious parenting movement by co-creating FLVillages globally where families can be educated on parenting through connection from the many legendary trailblazers before her, as well as learn about becoming eco-friendly advocates and supporting a more natural, holistic lifestyle is the main focus for FLV. Tangee is an eco-mamapreneur, a performer, and a devoted and loving mama to her 6 year old son..
