Nose for News by Sarah Stultz

 

I began this month in hopes of encouraging the kindness my daughter, Sophie, taught me in her 8 1/2 years on this earth. She would have been 11 Feb. 20, and though we have honored her in the years since she died with balloon releases and other remembrances, we wanted to try something different this year.

I sent out a plea to Facebook friends near and far and you, my readers, asking you to spread the goodness in your communities. I have been thrilled at the responses I have received.

No matter whether the deed was small or large, I have no doubt these acts made a difference in the lives of the people both on the giving end and the receiving end.

The day after my initial column ran, I received a message from one local woman who baked two batches of cookies. Instead of freezing them to keep on hand, she decided to give a dozen to her single neighbor, who appreciates homemade cooking.

Another area woman made a special visit to the nursing home to see her 92-year-old aunt, who does not have children to come visit her.

There were people who paid for others behind them in line at the drive-thru, and another Albert Lea woman took someone from out of the country to three appointments at Mayo Clinic in Rochester and bought her some food for her trip, too.

A close family friend took breakfast to the teachers and staff at her children’s school in Virginia.

My mother helped organize a luncheon for all the missionaries serving in the area near where they live, and my younger sister, who also lives in Virginia, painted rocks with her children like Sophie loved to do through the Albert Lea Rocks initiative. After they were done painting them, they hid them in some of their favorite spots as surprises for someone else passing through.

My older sister, who lives in Toronto, baked banana bread to deliver to some people they knew. She and her family also created bags of happiness, which were filled with prepackaged treats and other fun stuff, and had a smileyface balloon tied to them. They left them in places they figured people would find them with a note explaining what they were doing.

One of the recipients of the bags tracked down my sister on Facebook and said her 8-year-old daughter, who has autism, had received one of the bags. Inside of it were Legos, which happened to be one of her favorite things, and she was busy constructing the toys. She said her daughter wanted my sister to know that her kindness made her happy.

Our family, too, set out to accomplish kind deeds, some small and some large, and we were surprised with a few kind deeds that others did for us, as well.

The month has been a great experience for our family, and I hope it has been as uplifting for all of you who have participated, as well, whether you were on the giving or the receiving end.

I’ve been reminded that kindness can soften our hearts — I know this month has softened mine.

I hope this spirit of kindness continues on — and if you didn’t get a chance to participate, remember it’s never too late to spread a little kindness.

Sarah Stultz is the managing editor of the Tribune. Her column appears every Tuesday.