Random Acts of Kindness for My Birthday
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I did not have a very good birthday one year (and really, it was all my fault). My husband had a charity board meeting that night and I discovered when he got home that he did not have a birthday dinner planned. "Want to go to {our local dive bowling joint} for gluten-free pizza?" Clearly the man did not know me well, as my birthday is usually synonymous with martinis, sparkles and glitz. And he did not have a card. This from the man who had arranged an entire birthday trip to Hawaii (!) the year before aka he is usually super thoughtful and waaaay too nice to me.
Two really good friends who live many states away called randomly on my birthday - but gave no mention to it being my birthday. I give them credit, as I think their subconscious was saying "call her, it's her birthday", but it still sucked. I ended up sullen, crabby and feeling bad for myself and THEN I felt bad that I felt bad - I should be thrilled to see another year of life! I have known far too many people who died way too young to not be incredibly thankful for the gift of another birthday. I made the decision the next day that I would never spend another birthday in such a bad mood and would not rely on others to make my birthday special. Honestly, at that point, I probably swore that I was going back to Hawaii for my birthday. Or maybe to the Bahamas to have another one of the One & Only Ocean Club's AMAZING Pina Coladas (which I apparently drank too fast to photograph). But in late 2011, I changed my mind. |
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Instead, I decided that I would go back to what makes me happy - giving back to the community and putting a smile on the faces of others - and turn my birthday into an opportunity to give back. A few months ago I set a weight loss goal and asked friends and family to pledge $2 per pound loss towards my "Random Acts of Kindness Birthday" fund. I also started to set aside any promotional Target Gift Cards for the cause. A few months, 20+ pounds and WAY too many Target ad "deals" later, I am happier, healthier and have a nice slush fund to apply to my day of good deeds. |
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I will be sharing what I did for my Random Acts of Kindness Birthday as the events occur (below). If you happen to be feeling super nice, please consider doing a Random Act Of Kindness this week for a friend, family member or complete stranger in honor of this glutenista's birthday. Trust us - you most often get back WAY more than you give. In the meantime: We would LOVE to hear your ideas - what has someone done out of the blue to be nice to you that you really enjoyed? What have you done for others? |
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The day of my birthday, I was in luck. It ended up being the coldest day of the year! Most of the day was to be spent in subzero temperatures. I set off on my journey alone, and it ended up being one of the best birthdays of my life! And certainly the most feel-good experience of my year. (logistics note, if you ever want to do this and document it, bring someone else with you. It's hard to have time to organize everything and photograph everything)
Here are many of the things that I did. I'd list all of them out, but really I'm in denial of how old I am: Paid for several coffees for people in line behind me, in the drive through and in the store. I had a lot of coffee and hot chocolate that day. Gave coffee gift cards to: *Random students walking to class on the University campus in the below zero temps *Random workers crossing through downtown (good thing I'm blonde, they were very questioning of why a person was popping out of their still-running car to throw something in their hands) *A grocery store worker who had helped me make an BEAUTIFUL bouquet for a friend in the hospital a few months back. I had not forgotten her generosity. She was touched that I remembered *the mailwoman (what a freezing, cold job!) Dropped a huge load of gluten-free food off at the food shelf Purchased and dropped-off a bunch of fun stuff (DVDs, toys, coloring supplies, etc) at the in-hospital Ronald McDonald House at Children's Hospital Brought Hot Chocolate and Hand Warmers (best things ever!) to construction crews working on the new wing of the Children's Hospital Brought cupcakes to the nurses at the Maternity Labor & Delivery ward unit I had been to when having a miscarriage the previous fall - they had all been so nice to us. Dropped off a basket of fun baby stuff for the maternity nurses to give to a new mom and baby that did not have a lot Tucked $5 bills on the shelves of a $1 Dollar store Gave out Target Gift Cards at various stores, usually targeting lower income areas and moms in the Children's section. This was the scene of one of the most outgoing, grateful recipients. It was so fun. Brought cupcakes and boxes of hot cocoa to a fire station Paid expired parking meters Left rolls of quarters at a laundrymat Did random nice stuff for family members, young and old Brought gossip magazines, soup and treats to a friend on bed rest Bought Chipotle for a few groups of college students |
