Kindness

I appreciated the virtue of kindness on a train while travelling in Europe last January.

I had just bought some dinner items in a London organic food store. As I crossed the street on my green ebike I went over the curb a little too fast. The bag fell to create a honey-olive-red wine slurry that glistened in the receding light. I cut my finger as I tried to collect the glass and find a bin for its disposal.

On the train, a lady noticed my bloody finger that I was trying to conceal for the 20-minute journey home.

She handed me a tissue, and we chatted.

Another lady then came up shortly later and sprayed some antiseptic on my finger.

Following this, another lady gave me some balm her family had sent her from Turkey, entirely natural, she told me, ‘nothing works better’.

The three women had, for no other reason, shown kindness.

It made them feel good, and me.

This sense of kindness showed generosity, consideration and giving time to someone else.

Kindness also connects with other virtues, including patience, wisdom, compassion, perseverance, warmth, and resolve.

As teachers and learners, we engage with the virtue of kindness every day, giving time to the people around us.

How have you been kind today?

Until next time,

Mon x