Today is the World Kindness Day, introduced in 1998 by the World Kindness Movement, with the mission to “inspire individuals towards greater kindness and to connect nations to create a kinder world”. It is observed every November 13 by over 25 nations around the world.
Searching for “kindness” on Google brings up the following definition:
the quality of being friendly, generous, and considerate
I would also add tolerant to this definition. The source of the quotation “be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle” has been attributed to Plato, Philo of Alexandria and Ian Maclaren, but, whoever was the source, for me this quotation is the essence of kindness.
My perception of people and the society is shaped, first and foremost, by my immediate surrounding, but having travelled extensively I have learned to be tolerant towards people I may not immediately understand and whose customs I may not immediately approve.
A few years ago I was reading a news story by the CNN about a woman who caused an American Airlines plane to divert to another airport after she “became disruptive” and would not stop singing the Whitney Houston song I Will Always Love You.
My first reaction was that of indignation with the passenger acting unruly. But then a colleague pointed out few words which did not immediately grab my attention: “the woman told authorities her behavior was a result of her diabetes.”
The colleague, herself suffering with diabetes, explained:
To put it simply, diabetes can cause your blood-sugar to drop or raise above the normal level. If this happens, it can cause a wealth of problems, both in the short term and long term. In the short term, having a low blood-sugar (also known as Hypoglycemia) can cause high emotional stress, confusion, rage, and even a complete personality change.
It is conceivable, therefore, that the woman singing at the top of her lungs on the flight could have been suffering from a low blood-sugar, and therefore her singing was a result of her symptoms.
There I was, ashamed of being judgmental, looking down at first then looking up into her eyes and noticing she, of all people, did not judge me – she just realised I was caught up in ignorance.
How many times did something like this happen to you? How many times did you frown upon someone who behaved differently from what your definition of acceptable behaviour was? How many times did you judge someone coming from a different culture just because you did not understand it? What’s your story … leave a comment.