Do Something Little, Help Something Big

I have a mom admission to make.  I turn the radio down when the news comes on and my kids are with me in the car.  It's not to pretend these things don't happen, it's just to filter them from it for a while.  I don't want them to become jaded, where the headlines that should shock and horrify just become part of their every day life.  And that really is what has happened to us.  The headlines roll off our backs, and set into the background while we get on with our day.  We shrug things off and think, well what can we possibly do about it?  Exactly, what can we do?

Maybe it isn't something big, maybe it's something little.  There is so much negativity in our world that it seems incurable.  So why not start small?

Remember that old commercial, if I tell 10 friends, and they tell 10 friends and so on and so on.  Well, that's how I'm thinking these days.  If I show some kindness to our world and teach my kids to do the same, how will that impact their lives?  How can that little ripple effect our world?

We have a couple of story books that show that idea off to our kids quite well, the first is The Grumpy Morning by Pamela Duncan Edwards and the second is Have You Filled Your Bucket Today? by Carol McCloud .  

I think they are great starters to get your kids thinking about how what we do and how our attitudes can have an effect not just on themselves but on others.

The other way I can teach my kids this concept is by living it out myself.  That's why I was excited to be asked to join the Energizer Blog tour "Do Something Little, Help Something Big".  They are pledging to donate $100 000 to Evergreen to make cities more liveable.  For each person that visits their site and makes a pledge of what they will do to help this world out in any sort of act of kindness, they will donate a dollar.  As I write this the pledge counter stands at 35 808 - so there is a ways to go yet.  I'd love to see them max out.

For my part, I am pledging 5 things.  5 simple acts of Kindness.

1. Donate what I'm not using - clothing, outgrown toys, books on pregnancy/babies - all of that can go to someone who currently needs it.

2. Turn out the lights when we aren't in that room - my 4 year old has really picked up on this one and has become the 'light police' in our house

3. Hold open more doors - you know what it's like when you are pushing a stroller around and the person in front of you lets the door shut just as you are getting there - so frustrating!  I'm trying to be more aware of who is around me when I'm out and about so I can help them out.

4. Smile and manners towards service people.  I honestly would hate to have their job because people can be so rude to store clerks, serving staff and cashiers.  I'm trying to put myself in their shoes, and remember that they are people doing their job.  A kind word and a smile can really make their day and their shift a little bit easier.

5.  Take charge of our recycling.  We don't have curbside pickup where we currently live so I'm making a point to drive it in to a recycling depot when I go to work.

That's it.  5 little things that can make a difference.  What 5 things do you think you can do too? 

To take part in Energizer and Evergreen's initiative visit http://nowthatspositivenergy.ca/

Disclosure – I am participating in the Energizer Canada & Evergreen “Do Something Little, Help Something Big” program by Mom Central Canada on behalf of Energizer Canada & Evergreen. I received compensation as a thank you for my participation. The opinions on this blog are my own.