Perhaps the only legacy worth having is to have been known as a kind and compassionate person.
-Unknown
What exactly is kindness? A quick google search gives a simple definition; the quality of being friendly, generous, and considerate. While that is true, kindness is a lot more than that. Kindness is Everything provides the perfect definition: Kindness is the sincere and voluntary use of one’s time, talent, and resources to better the lives of others, one’s own life, and the world through genuine acts of love, compassion, generosity, and service.
Kindness is one of the most beautiful and powerful forces for good that exists in the entire world.
While kindness is something we hear of often, I wonder if we truly are actively choosing to be kind? Do we intentionally live our lives with kindness for ourselves and others? Perhaps we can look within ourselves and commit to making kindness part of the legacy we leave behind.
Reflection Time
One of my favorite pastimes is watching movies with my family, more specifically, watching movies that are inspirational and uplifting. They make us laugh, they make us cry (most often just me), and often impact our thinking. Such movies motivate and inspire us to look deep within.
A movie I recently watched called “Greater”, did just that. It inspired me! It’s a movie based on the true story of Brandon Bulsworth. I won’t ruin the movie for you in case you want to watch it, but I would like to share a part of the movie that made me dig a little deeper.
A character in the movie (which I believe is a representation of the demons we battle with in life) shared this -> “…Nobody’s gonna remember anything that we did. Cruel or kind. In the great scheme of things if you shake my hand or spit in my eye, what difference does it really make?”
That part of the movie stuck with me, it made me stop and think. Sure, it might sound silly especially since it came from a movie but I asked myself: How true was this? Did it really not matter if we chose kindness over rudeness? Was our existence so insignificant? Did our life truly not make a difference? Our actions – did they matter?
It Matters!
Every action we take, every word we speak, everything we do matters. We have a choice on how we live, how we carry ourselves, and how we make others feel. This world might try to convince us that what we do does not matter. It will trick us into believing that our presence is so insignificant but what a big lie that is. We have a duty to live our lives with faith, trust, and kindness because yes, it matters!
That smile, that word of encouragement, that text or call. That person who held the door for you, the one who paid for your coffee, the friend or the stranger who prayed for you. All those different acts matter. They all make an impact in your life and in the life of others.
Choosing kindness over and over is how we make a difference. We will never be remembered by our degrees, our possessions, or our looks but rather by how we actively chose to treat others time and time again. This creates a chain of kindness that slowly changes the world and that is part of creating a legacy.
What Will You Leave Behind?
Kindness is purposefully doing our best to be our best and actively helping others be their best, too.
https://www.kindnessiseverything.com/
Let’s ask ourselves this: How will others remember me? What will I leave behind? What will be my legacy?
I encourage you to make sure kindness is a part of the legacy you leave behind. To always choose kindness, to be better, and make others better.
Remember: Kindness is one of the most beautiful and powerful forces for good that exists in the entire world.
