PostPoems Be Artistic. Be Creative. Be Inspired!

The other day in the bookstore…this I truly believe

I was blessed with one of the nicest compliments I have ever received.

I just opened the bookstore…a new day had begun

when a mother walked in smiling…right behind her was her son.

She said her son remembered me from the last time they were in the store

(can you imagine that!)

and he wanted to come in and say hi…to that nice man in the hat.

She said, you probably don’t remember us…

“Of course I do. I made him an origami frog.” I said.

“Yes!” She smiled his name is Miller and he keeps it next to his bed.”

I smiled and said ‘Hi Miller!”  

He smiled, said hi while waving his little hand in the air…

then they headed to our Children’s section 

where Mom read him a book as he sat in his favorite chair.

She bought the book and I had a chance to look Miller in the eye 

when we both smiled at one another as we said goodbye.

This got me thinking about the power of kindness…

how we never know…

when it comes to small act of kindness

how far that that kindness will go.

How it could begin with a simple act…the tiniest of threads

like a little origami frog…that sleeps next to a bed…

As far as Miller goes I can’t think of anything sweeter than that…

And as for me…

I can’t think of a better way to be thought of…

Than that nice man in the hat.

I am grateful to be able to walk the path of kindness.

The same path my parents and ancestors created for me.

The same path I hope to keep open

for every member of my family

May we be blessed to understand  

how any act of kindness we unfurl…

can start a string of kindness

that just might change the world.

We’re surrounded by hate these days…people with diametrically opposed views…

It streams across our social media…its shown daily on the evening news…

If we are to believe these outlets…hate is all around…

Looking at our politics, Israel and Palestine, Ukraine and Russia

there’s a lot of hate to go around.

But at the same time when I look around my neighborhood

What I often see…are simple acts of kindness, compassion, good will and generosity.

I see them every day when I’m behind the counter at the bookstore…

random act of kindness…something as simple as opening a door.

When a person opens a door for a stranger…a metamorphosis takes place.

Whatever their expression was before the door…there’s now a smile on each face.

When a door is held open for someone…

a ripple…an unspoken message has been sent…

which often leads to a smile, a thank you…and many times a compliment.

And I like to think each ripple of kindness…like opening a door

reminds everyone who’s watching…what we were created for…

Created for simple acts of kindness…the beauty is we never really know…

how meaningful one act can be…how far one ripple of kindness will go. 

If we’re lucky it may travel all the way to our politicians…

may help to ease their mutual disdain…

It may travel as far as Israel, Palestine, Russia…and Ukraine.

Because when we open a door…

whether you open one for me…or I open one for you

There’s no way of ever knowing 

how many people will walk through.

Which makes me wonder…

If more people opened doors for one another…

If one simple act of kindness we all choose…. 

Perhaps one day only acts of kindness will be found on social media

and show up on the evening news.

I’m grateful that I know…

something that in every part of the world is true…

If we teach our children to be kind to animals

there’s a good chance they will grow up

and be kind to people too.

Today’s blessing comes from the words of Steve Maraboli…

Who, as often is the case, express it better than me.

Since we can’t always see what another person is going through…

what kind of suffering…anguish…ordeal

a kind gesture can reach a wound

that only compassion can heal

While in London we visited the British Museum…where walking on our own

we stood in front of and marveled at the famed…Rosetta Stone.

The Rosetta Stone it turns out was one of archeology’s greatest gifts…

allowing us to decipher and read ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs,

I mention this because after returning to the states while walking around Asheville

we came across this haunt….

on a side street off the beaten path called Rosetta’s Restaurant.

It turns out Rosetta’s is a Vegan restaurant…so with fate nudging us…on a hunch 

we entered Rosetta’s Restaurant and sat down to have some lunch.

Lunch was a Vegan delight…a meal we wound’t have wanted to miss

A Vegan delight you scoff…yes there is such a thing as this.

But what caught our attention at Rosetta’s was the sign when we paid our bill

asking if we would make a small donation

to help them in their quest to feed Asheville’s homeless population.

What a wonderful idea we thought…one we hope other cities would repeat…

so we gladly paid a little more so a homeless person could eat.

In the short time we were in the restaurant four different homeless people were fed.

proving kindness, generosity and giving…despite the callousness of our government…

is still alive…not dead.

The Rosetta Stone proved worthy of all the accolades it’s way were hurled…

as it changed our understanding of history…of people and the world.

Here’s hoping’s Rosetta’s Restaurant in Asheville, North Carolina 

will help us all discuss….

ways to accept and assist people who are less fortunate than us.

It took 23 years to unlock the secrets of the Rosetta Stone…

23 years to decipher its format

I hope we can decipher the secrets of Rosetta’s Restaurant…

in a lot less time than that.

I’m grateful for kindness…

any act of kindness that any day becomes unfurled…

for who’s to say…

that one act of kindness might change a person

or someday

even change the world.

Today I’m grateful for understanding 

the power in the gift of kindness:

Knowing any time we reach for kindness

and are blessed to have achieved it…

How it cost nothing for us to give it…

but was priceless to those who received it.