It’s International Pay it Forward Day tomorrow, 28 April. What (X) can you do to help someone and support the day? This is my ‘X’ post for the A to Z Challenge.
Pay it Forward Day
Pay it Forward Day exists to create a ripple of kindness around the world. It’s about embracing the power of giving. They are promoting making a better world through acts of kindness. The aim is to inspire over 10 million acts of kindness around the world. More than 80 countries participate in the day.
‘Pay it Forward Day’ came from a concept in a book by Catherine Ryan Hyde titled “Pay it Forward“. When 12 year old Trevor is set an assignment by his social studies teacher to change society, he decides to start a goodwill chain. He helps three others and asks them to “pay it forward” rather than paying him back. You may have seen the movie which is based on the novel.
Years ago I remember someone wanting to do something for my Mum because of what she’d done to help them. My Mum said something about it being OK as someone else would help her when needed. To me that was my Mum embracing the concept of Pay it Forward Day before it was even a thing.
A few ways I’ve experienced kindness
When I was a young adult on a camp I became upset about something. A friend who didn’t know what had happened handed me a Mintie and said “It’s moments like these!”. Their slogan at the time. Needless to say I started laughing.
Fast forward a few years to being a Mum with a baby and a toddler. I had my baby in a baby sling and was trying to unload my groceries at the checkout. An older gentleman stepped in and did it for me.
Also around that time as we arrived at the shops my daughter ran off and climbed on the coin in the slot pony to get a ride. As she’d run off I told my daughter she wasn’t going to get a ride now. A lady with her mother saw and overheard what happened. They encouraged me that I’d done the right thing.
As you can see a paying it forward act of kindness doesn’t have to be a big thing.
However the one that sticks most in my mind was my Bible Study friends who helped clean my house one week. They did this instead of Bible Study. The week before I’d admitted that I wasn’t copying, that my house was a disaster and I didn’t know where to start. They decided that next Bible Study was about cleaning my house. It meant so much to me then and even now.
How can you pay it forward?
Do some sort of act of kindness towards someone else is the obvious answer. But what you might ask. Below are a few ideas but there are more.
- pay for someone else’s coffee
- pay for the next person’s toll, petrol etc
- Say some encouraging words to someone
- Send a message to let someone know you’re thinking of them
- donate to a worthwhile cause
- download & print some free pay it forward cards or fliers to give out when you do an act of kindness
Do you have a pay it forward story? How are you going to pay it forward, not just tomorrow but on other days as well?