28 days of random kindness

tuesdays child is full of grace...

do you ever run across ideas or actions that make you think "i wish i had thought of this"?  28 days of random kindness is one of those for me.

we have talked about social grace, how important it is and it's resurgance.  well, this is a story about a person whose actions are the epitome of social grace.  she has simply captured my heart and admiration.  i did wish i had thought of her idea, yet realized very quickly that there is much more joy for me in following her blog as she updates it daily.

nancy wallis is a jewellery artist and interior decorator, who has her own shop nancywallisdesigns where we can all admire her beautiful jewellery creations.  but, that's not the story.  nancy had been trying to come up with reasons for liking february (in canada!).  the exercise only brought negative thoughts and made her feel that she might be a pessimist.  while i don't see her that way at all, those thoughts gave way to nancy's idea of daily randome acts of kindness.

so far, nancy has done things like twice donating clothing to charities, helping a friend, making the first purchase from a new shop on etsy, plus several others - and it's only february 10!  i can hardly wait to see what wonderful random acts of kindness are in store for the next 18 days.  and, guess what?  we all have the opportunity do just that by visiting nancy's blog where every day she modestly writes about what she has done.  i guarantee it will make you feel good.

nancy, i so admire your thoughts and actions.  in taking on what many see as a huge challenge, you may not even realize the best part - and that is, every single person who reads one your posts leaves enriched, inspired, and on the receiving end of your 28 days of random kindness.  

now that is really something!

bringing grace back

wikipedia says:

• social graces are skills used to interact politely in social situations. They include manners, etiquette, deportment and fashion. Traditionally, these skills were taught primarily to young women at a finishing school or charm school. The popularity of social graces has waned over the last century, but has recently experienced a resurgence with an emphasis on business etiquette and international protocol.

so why are social graces making a comeback if the popularity had waned for so long?  because they are important communication tools! who wouldn't benefit from that?  (and besides, vintage is cool, right?)

social graces are guidelines and social rules used to foster amiable social and business relationships, regardless of individual  backgrounds.  they facilitate awareness of others in social and business settings so we become more gracious, less selfish, and better able to handle any situation – particularly the tough ones.  

i think social graces are worth bringing back!