“Practice Random Acts of Kindness and Senseless Beauty”

Truth: The key to getting an “A” on a paper in my 11th grade English class was to use a quote in your opening paragraph.  Not a quote from the book, necessarily, just one that contained a word that was a theme in the book. Bartlett’s Familiar Quotations came in quite handy.  It was the 90’s, we didn’t have Pinterest yet. Or Facebook. Or Smartphones. Seriously, the Internet and Email were just catching on. And now I feel old.

Outside of English class, I am not one who particularly “likes” quotes or mantras. And thanks to the Internet, words can be copied and manipulated so easily, it is hard to tell who originally said what.  Or if that is exactly what they said, or the context of what they were saying… Abraham Lincoln said never trust a quote you see on the Internet.

But.  Sometimes someone at some point is able to articulate a concept that I feel but cannot quite explain.  “Practice Random Acts of Kindness and Senseless Beauty.”  Putting beautiful things into the world for no real reason.  Just because.  And doing something nice for someone else, without expecting anything in return.  Just because.  With all the chaos any negativity in the world, practicing kindness and adding beauty to the everyday helps restore some balance.

Adding beauty to everyday life was the original intention behind the Etsy shop I opened 3 years ago.  It is also the reason I peruse the Manager’s Specials in the Floral Department at Kroger (grocery store).  This pretty bouquet of Pink Flowers:  99 cents.  Less than $1 to add some beauty and happiness to my home (re-using glass vases helps keep the flower buying/giving budget in check).  Just a little bit of care, these flowers will last a week, maybe more!

Add a bow, and for a couple bucks, you can give a “just because” gift to a friend or neighbor.

 

Don’t have a lot of empty vases lying around?  Any piece of glassware can do the job… like a mason jar, or that tasting glass from your favorite Craft Brewery! [Shameless plug for Saint Arnold, Texas’s Oldest Craft Brewery]

 

Now go do something beautiful and/or nice, for goodness sakes!  Literally.  For the sake of all thing good still left in the world.
Thanks 😀