Examples of Random Acts of Kindness: Pay it Forward for Pennies

 

Examples of Random Acts of Kindness: Pay it Forward for Pennies

Over 25 years ago, Catherine Ryan Hyde was driving her old Datsun through a rough area of Los Angeles at night. When her car died and began to fill with smoke at a freeway off ramp, that wasn't the worst of her problems. Ms. Hyde saw two men running towards her, one carrying a blanket. In her mind, she knew she was dead. Instead, the men pushed past her and proceeded to smother the engine fire with the blanket. The car could have exploded at any moment, killing all of them. They put their lives at risk to help a stranger. After the fire department arrived and the dust had settled, she looked up to thank the men. They were gone, and she realized she could never repay or thank them for what they had done. Instead she decided to pay it forward. That event inspired Catherine Ryan Hyde to write the book of the same name.

A movie based on Ms. Hyde's book was released in 2000, which garnered even more attention for the Pay it Forward movement. In September of that year, the Pay it Forward Foundation was created to educate and inspire students to realize that they can change the world, and provide them with opportunities to do so.

No matter how much money is in your bank account, no matter how hard it might be for you to make ends meet — you can get involved. Sometimes the smallest thing can have a huge impact, and make a big difference in someone's day. Giving creates an atmosphere of abundance in your own life. When you give, your energies are focused on doing something with the gifts you do have, not what you're lacking.

Surprising strangers and friends with totally random acts of kindness (with no expectation of repayment) is often so unexpected it takes them aback; which adds to the fun. Anyone can participate, even your kids. Teaching generosity at a young age will start them off on a lifelong path of giving. Hopefully it will inspire others to do the same.

Besides helping out other Mommysavers members by posting a giveaway item in our RAK (Random Acts of Kindness) Forum, there are many ways for your family to Pay it Forward for just pennies.  Here are some ideas, some of which were originally posted in our forums:

Examples of Random Acts of Kindness

• Pay for the person behind you in the drive-through
• Do your kids' chore(s).  Talk about a great big hug when they walk in the door after school!
• If your kids do their own laundry, do it for them leaving it folded on their bed
• Mow your neighbor's lawn (or shovel their driveway)
• Put a quarter in a parking meter about to expire
• Give your kids' outgrown clothing to a friend
• During 2-for-1 sales at the grocery store donate an item to the food shelf
• Donate old formalwear to a Theater Company
• Compliment a total stranger
• Leave change in the vending machine
• Tuck a $1 in a library book when you return it along with a RAK note
• Let someone go in front of you in a line
• Leave unexpired coupons you won't need/use at the store right by the product
• When you're at the convenience store, buy a lottery ticket for a stranger
• Tape $ to a vending machine (or leave change in a coin return)
• Return a shopping cart for someone in the parking lot
• Write a letter to an anonymous nursing home resident (include some of your kids' artwork)
• Write a love note to your husband and put it in his wallet before he leaves for work (or send him an “I love you” text)
• Same idea for the kids if you pack their lunches
• At a restaurant, leave a particularly large tip
• Write a thank-you note or letter of appreciation for something you normally wouldn't
• If you see someone trying photograph their family, offer to take it for them so they all can be included
• Let someone go in front of you at the grocery checkout
• Offer to take someone's shopping cart back to the cart return
• Bring treats in to the office (or send them with your husband)
• Call a friend who may need a pick me up
• Let someone merge in front of you in traffic
• Donate a bag of groceries to a needy family (call your church to see if they can help facilitate)
• Give the balance of your gift card to someone behind you in the checkout line
• Volunteer your time to a charity, nursing home, school, church or other organization
• Donate books to your school library or child's classroom
• Send an email to your kids' teachers telling them that they are doing a great job
• Leave a treat in the mailbox for your carrier
• Make cookies or brownies for your local volunteer fire department
• Drop off some crayons and coloring books at your local doctors office, or hospital
• Bring flowers to a local nursing home
• Have a “free water” stand on a hot day for people who are walking by in your neighborhood
• Pack extra treats with your kids school lunch for them to share with friends