I’ve been thinking a lot about kindness lately, about where it starts and what keeps it moving from one person to the next. It’s been a tough couple of weeks for a lot of people in our country, and I can’t help but wonder, how did we get here?
I believe that we are all made in likeness, and because of that, our hearts are naturally drawn toward one another. But the thing about kindness is, it’s a choice. It’s something that we should give freely with the hopeful expectation that it might one day be given freely to us. And I’m not necessarily talking about kindness that takes shape as grand gestures, or niceties that are offered up on special occasions. I’m talking more in the day-to-day, in kindness that abounds in equal measure for a loved one as it does a stranger on the street. The way I see it, how we choose to interact with our neighbors, our coworkers, the people online, the check-out clerk at the grocery store, and even the person who mindlessly cuts us off in traffic has a profound effect on how others will choose to interact with us. Because here’s the other thing I believe about kindness: It’s contagious.
At Magnolia, we have written something we call the Magnolia Manifesto, which serves as a cornerstone or lighthouse of sorts, as something we can point to and say this is what we believe to be true. There’s a particular line that kept returning to me again and again these past few weeks: “We believe in human kindness, knowing we are made better when we work together.” Ain’t that the truth..
It made me think that there’s no better time than now for our company to act on the things that we stand for. Our team has made a bunch of these flyers, and written on each one is a simple act of kindness. Kindness that asks us to look each other in the eye and see one another as valuable human beings. We’ve decided to start right here at home in Waco, TX. So we’re going to be hanging them up around the office, at the Silos and all around town. We have a link to the flyer below so that you can download and print a few for yourself. Hang them up at home, in your office, or at school. I think a subtle reminder like this is sometimes all it takes to help us choose kindness.
I believe in the resilience of humankind and I can’t help but wonder what goodness we might be able to offer this world if we joined our voices together. I’m challenging our people at Magnolia to make kindness loud. I’d like to challenge y’all to do the same. If you’re willing to join us in spreading kindness, use #makeKINDNESSloud on social media.
Kindness is contagious, but the spark has to start somewhere. Why don’t we start here? And why don’t we start now?
The Flyers:
We created four different flyers—two that include general acts of kindness (great for your home, office, or around your hometown), one that is catered more towards kiddos (great for teachers and schools) and one more that allows you to name the act and fill in the blank.
How to Print (and then spread kindness):
1. Print the flyer(s) of your choice by clicking the buttons below.
2. Once printed, cut along the dotted line (up to the solid black line) so that each piece can be easily torn off the flyer.
3. Then, post them up to #makeKINDNESSloud with us!
