NO ‘HO’LDING BACK: Everyday Acts of Kindness

ELTON HO
Copy Editor

I really do appreciate the Alhambra High School community; it’s not perfect, but it tends to be pretty friendly. There’s something about the casual acts of disrespect I witness every day that really just drives me crazy. Whether it’s incessantly chatting over a teacher’s instruction or indifferently cutting in the lunch line, being unkind can’t exactly give you much but a dirty look—so why do it?

While I hate to see such rudeness, I haven’t lost any faith in humanity or anything. Everyone has their grumpy days and as they say, a few drops of oil won’t darken the whole sea. However, it’s still important to remember once in a while the simplicity and value of being kind.

It’s nice that Random Acts of Kindness Week encourages kind deeds, but random acts of kindness don’t need to be a big enough deal that one should be told to share them with #RAKweek2015. Kindness can be as simple as smiling at strangers, apologizing and accepting apologies or saying “thank you” and “you’re welcome.” To be kind is to play one’s part in creating a more understanding and accepting environment for everyone.

Kindness is not something to practice superficially for one week and then forget. That may be the first step, but long-term everyday kindness comes by developing the mindset that people are worth being kind to and that kind gestures are just the right thing to do—and really, both are true.