Circles of Kindness
"Jesus himself said: 'It is more blessed to
give than to receive.'" (Acts 20:35 NIV)
I was pushing my shopping cart loaded with a week’s worth of groceries out
of the store the other day when I suddenly heard, "Wait Dad you forgot!",
behind me. My oldest son then ran up, grabbed the separate bag of groceries
that we had put into our cart for the local food bank, and hurried over to
the collection barrel with a happy smile on his face. As I watched him my
mind flashed back to another Autumn afternoon 13 years ago. I was keeping an
eye on him and his younger sister as they played in the leaves under a tree
outside a local mission. Laid off from work with no money in the bank and
little food in the house, I held their sleeping, baby brother in my arms
while my wife went in to get enough groceries from the mission’s food bank
to see us through another few days. I remember smiling at her as she came
out carrying a bag very similar to the one my son was now dropping in the
donation barrel. It felt good then knowing that there were such kind people
in the world and it felt even better now being able to complete the circle
of kindness that once touched our lives.
This world is full of circles of kindness. They begin with a single act of
kindness, one loving gift, or one helping hand. Then they travel from heart
to heart, soul to soul, and life to life. They are passed on with love and
accepted with happiness until they circle the globe and find their way back
to the one who started them. It is joy to start them, to be a part of them,
and to complete them as well. They remind you that we are all "one" here and
they fill your soul with God’s love and Heaven’s light.
Start a few circles of kindness going today then. Share what you have and
who you are. Give your food, your money, your time, your work, your love and
your smile. Do so with a happy and peaceful heart. Let the good you do
circle the world on the wings of love now and forever.
By: Joseph J. Mazzella