I’ve had this book for a few months and now felt like the exact right time to read it. It would make a lovely holiday gift for someone on your list or for yourself. Upworthy is a popular contributor on social media, featuring stories of kindness submitted by the public. This volume, published by National Geographic, is a compilation of those stories divided into six chapters. The stories are mostly short — from a paragraph to 2-3 pages — but every one of them is uplifting, a reminder that in our darkest, scariest moments, ordinary folks can shine like a bright light.
Upworthy’s mission is to “shine a light on the best of humanity.” They gather stories from all around the world that exemplify basic human goodness and post them on social media. Sometimes they offer a prompt, as they did for this volume: What is the kindest thing a stranger has ever done for you? This book, featuring 101 stories, is meant to provide comfort in the darkness, particularly when much of the news is so grim. The book is divided into 6 chapters: The Kindness of Strangers; Learn by Heart; It’s the Little Things; The Kids Are Alright; When I Needed It Most; and Away From Home. People submitted stories about their childhood, about teachers who encouraged them or a family member who always supported them, about times they struggled with grief or illness, about being stranded and alone, about feeling self conscious and out of place — situations that might be very familiar to readers. And in these situations, seemingly from out of nowhere, most unexpectedly, a stranger helped. It might be something as simple as recognizing the person’s distress and acknowledging it, hugging the person or holding their hand, offering food and drink, giving a ride or a shoulder to cry on, or paying a bill. These simple acts, some of them having happened decades in the past, had enormous impact on the receivers. They experienced what I would call a moment of grace, a transformative experience. Often, these people never learned the name of the person who helped them but they have never forgotten the actions of those strangers or the way they felt.
These were beautiful, moving stories to read, and what was so striking to me about them is that they didn’t involve stunning feats of extraordinary heroism. They involve everyday ordinary kindness, something every single one of us is capable of. It is a reminder to pay attention to the folks around you and to exercise decency and compassion, which seem in tragically short supply these days. Most of us aren’t in a position to do something incredible to change the world; we aren’t going to lead the march or give a rousing speech or rush into a burning building. But each of us can change someone’s world just by being attentive and kind. Maybe you’ve already done it and don’t even know how your common goodness turned someone’s day or even life around. I find times such as we are living in to be overwhelming. We are facing so many huge, threatening situations and it can make one feel powerless. This book is a reminder of the enormous power of kindness, even in the smallest acts.
