The past few days, I’ve experienced a number of small acts of kindness that have reminded me of this. At a gas station, the person at the pump next to me cleaning his car windows said with a smile, “We can see again. At least for a couple of minutes.” He laughed and I laughed with him. His comment brightened my day as I cleaned off the street grim from the car windows.

In the grocery store parking lot, when I was looking for a place to put my cart away, a woman walking by said, “I’ll take that.” She took the cart into the store with her to do her shopping.

A retreatant whose shower wasn’t working met me at the end of the day with a smile instead of a complaint. The inconvenience of using a different shower that night didn’t seem to bother him.

When the sisters went out to eat to celebrate Sister Mary David Walgenbach’s anniversary of profession, the waitress noticed Sister Mary David opening her cards and asked if it was her birthday. Sister Joanne Kollasch said, “It is a celebration.” So the waitress brought Sister Mary David a free piece of pie with a candle in it to contribute to the celebration. We were all blessed by her action.

Small acts of kindness or a simple smile can mean so much. Some years ago, doing random acts of kindness was popular. It seems like a good resolution for 2018. Our world can use more kindness.

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