What is Kindness ?
" Kindness is synonymous with mental health," writes Ferrucci, whose belief that kindness benefits both the giver and the receiver informs this study. Honesty, forgiveness, trust and humility are among the qualities that make up kindness.
Piero Ferrucci is a psychotherapist and philosopher who was a student and collaborator with Roberto Assagioli, the founder of psychosynthesis. In this polished and pensive tome, he says that we are going through "an Ice Age of the Heart" where people are often chilly and indifferent to each other.
The reliance on technology, such as cell phones and email, to keep in touch with others instead of face-to-face encounters is a sign of this "global cooling."
The single-minded pursuit of money and power knocks aside the values that have animated religions for years.
Kindness is the one trait that can save us.
He quotes the Dalai Lama:
"I believe that if we stop to think, it is clear that our very survival, even today, depends upon the acts and kindness of so many people. Right from the moment of our birth, we are under the care and kindness of our parents; later in life, when facing the sufferings of disease and old age, we are again dependent on the kindness of others."
Ferrucci notes that being kind is a way of life that can bring happiness to others as well as to those who practice it:
"To receive kindness does us good. Think of a time someone has been kind to you, in a big or a small way: A passerby gave your directions to reach the station or a stranger threw herself in a river to save you from drowning. What effect did it have on you? Probably a beneficial one, because if someone helps us when we need it, we feel relief. And everyone likes to be heard, treated with warmth and friendliness, understood, and nourished.
"Something similar happens on the other side of the equation: Giving kindness does us as much good as receiving it. . . . The true benefit of kindness is being kind. Perhaps more than any other factor, kindness gives meaning and value to our life, raises us above our troubles and our battles, and makes us feel good about ourselves."
Ferrucci distinguishes this virtue from self-interested politeness, calculated generosity, superficial etiquette, and kindness against one's will. In eighteen well-designed and thought-out chapters, he presents various facets of this quality including honesty, forgiveness, mindfulness, empathy, generosity, gratitude, service and joy. Along the way, he offers many insights into human nature and some practice suggestions. Here is one of them:
"Try this experiment. Start with an ordinary situation such as riding in a taxi, buying paper at a stationary shop, or sitting in the train. Then try exchanging a few words with the taxi driver, making eye contact with the salesperson, striking up a conversation with someone on the train. For some of us, that happens spontaneously; others have to do it deliberately.
Be fully present in this brief contact, and expect the other to be so as well. Suddenly a change occurs : " Something becomes unblocked and energy circulates. It might not be an encounter of two souls. But it surely will be an exchange of vital energy between two people."
I. First Story
Miracle of Kindness
Homeless Man Plays Piano So Beautifully It Might Earn Him a Job Donald Gould's beautiful rendition of Styx's "Come Sail Away" will amaze you.
By Eliza Murphy , 2 July 2015, abc News.
Homeless Man Plays Street Piano Beautifully in Florida (Come Sail Away) | Mashable News
A homeless man in Sarasota, Florida, is going wildly viral after shocking people with his incredible musical skills.
One passerby, Aurore Henry, took notice of the bearded mystery man as he sat at the piano effortlessly playing a beautiful rendition of Styx’s “Come Sail Away.” She was so impressed with his talents that she uploaded the video of his sidewalk serenade to her Facebook page where it now has a whopping 2.5 million views in just two days.
“We went outside to chat and we saw him playing and it was so phenomenal that I got my phone out to start recording it,” Henry, 34, of Suffield, Connecticut, told ABC News. “Obviously I had no idea this would become such a thing. I put it on Facebook and I saw a few people share it right away.”
She explained in the video’s caption that Sarasota had “installed ‘public pianos’ throughout downtown” as part of the Sarasota Keys Piano Project, which places donated pianos along bustling sidewalks.
“This homeless man now has the opportunity to be something other than 'just a nuisance' to all the people in downtown,” she wrote. “Just took my breath away. Wow.”
He’s been taking the Internet’s breath away ever since, his special talent spreading like wildfire across social media, ultimately gaining the attention of local ABC affiliate WWSB who tracked the man down.
His name is Donald Gould. The 51-year-old says he began playing clarinet when he was just a kid, which led him to play the instrument in the U.S. Marine Corps. When he got out of the service, Donald explained that he wanted to teach music, so he studied music education at Spring Arbor University in Michigan where he was originally from.
"I took music theory and ear training, and I had to learn how to play every instrument from the piccolo down to the tuba,” Gould told WWSB. “I can write parts like a handbook."
Unfortunately, he ran out of money just three credits shy of graduating and instead worked odd jobs while starting a family. But that was just the beginning of a downward spiral.
In 1998, Gould’s wife died unexpectedly.
"They sat me down, and they told me what had happened, that my wife had passed away, and I just lost it man," he recalled.
That’s when he hit rock bottom. Gould started struggling with substance abuse which caused Social Services to take his son, who was only 3-years-old at the time.
He eventually made his way to Florida where he still tries to keep in touch with his musical roots, entertaining passerby with his talented tunes playing anything from Billy Joel to Bach.
“It’s sad,” Henry said of the gifted Gould. “He cleary has some substance abuse problems and what not, but that still flows out of him.”
The following day after taking her initial video, Henry ran into Gould again. She was thrilled for the opportunity to learn more about him and to tell him just how many people were touched online by his music.
“We talked a little bit about where he got his music background, what his life has been like,” she explained. “It was really nice. The look on his face when we told him about the video, someone had already told him they had seen it online, and he just looked stricken. He’s very modest. He was like, ‘Oh you know, that’s really nice. I don’t really know what to think about that.’
Now after years of living off the streets, there could finally be hope.
A local restaurant named Surf Shack is offering to give Gould an audition to play in their piano bar.
“Yeah it is true. We’re looking to arrange it,” said the owner of the restaurant, Steve Bishop. “We call it a New York-style piano bar. It’s got a balcony that seats about 50 and a nightclub inside. We do live piano music just about every night. We’ve been doing auditions for local people and we heard about this gentleman and we’re trying to arrange it. We’re in the early phases here but we are trying to do our homework to touch base with him. Hopefully we’re able to work this out and do some good for him.”
Henry hopes Gould’s story helps shed some positive light on the homeless community, especially around the Sarasota area.
“I hope this humanizes the homeless a little more,” she said. “I think it’s important to recognize that what the people on the streets really need is a purpose and a sense of belonging. And that’s what Donald is getting."
This is a Wonderful act of Kindness of Aurore Henry has changed the life forever,he went to play National Anthem at NFL Game , now, rest is history.....!!
Now, Just Enjoy his music Intrumentals at
Donald Gould - Come Sail Away (Official Motion Music Video)
What a mesmerising Transformation of life, because of life changing kindness act of a one person.
It happened just like a Magic...!!
II. Second Story
How a High Profile Stock Broker 's kindness has turned a Homeless man into Millionnaire.
1. Chris Gardner: The Inspiration for the Movie “The Pursuit of Happyness”
Chris Gardner was a homeless father in San Francisco during the 1980s. He was involved in a low-paid trainee program at a stock brokerage firm. During this time, Gardner didn't have enough money to pay for a deposit on an apartment. He slept wherever he was able to sleep. This included a church shelter, toilet at a railway station as well as parks. He even slept under his desk when his fellow workers had left the office and gone home. The little bit of money he earned was used to pay for his son’s childcare so he could work.
Pic : Chris Gardner
2. Life Changing Moment
Gardner went back to San Francisco after meeting with his father. He saw a well dressed man sitting in a stunning red Ferrari. Gardner was impressed with the car and asked the man sitting in the driver's seat about his profession. The driver told Gardner he was a stockbroker. At that moment, Gardner decided that would be his career path. The stockbroker met with Gardner and explained to him about the world of finance. He then set up meetings between branch managers of large stock brokerage firms and Gardner.
This next two months Gardner spent meeting with people from places like Paine Webber, Dean Witter, and others. He was eventually accepted into a training program by E.F. Hutton.
Gardner persevered and the brokerage made him a full employee when he completed their training program. He was very successful and eventually opened his own investment firm in 1987.
3. A Father And Homeless
Finance Career
After being very successful at Dean Witter Reynolds, Gardner opened his own brokerage firm. It was called Gardner Rich & Co. It was structured to be an institutional brokerage firm. His company specialized in derivative product transactions as well as the execution of equity and debt. The brokerage's eventual customers were some of the largest unions, institutions as well as public pension plans and more. It was started with $10,000 in a small office that had only one piece of furniture.
The business was a huge success. Gardner sold his stake in the company for a deal worth millions. He then founded Gardner International Holdings. This company eventually had offices in San Francisco, New York as well as Chicago.
After Gardner sold his small stake in Gardner Rich in a multimillion-dollar deal in 2006, he became CEO and founder of Christopher Gardner International Holdings, with offices in New York, Chicago, and San Francisco. During a visit to South Africa to observe elections around the time of the 10th anniversary of the end of apartheid,
Gardner met with Nelson Mandela to discuss possible investment in South African emerging markets. Gardner was planning an investment venture there which he hoped would create hundreds of jobs and introduce millions in foreign currency into the country's economy.
How Simple acts of Kindness can change the life forever....!!
III. Wonderful Video on The Power of Kindness by Simon Sinek....
This is nice video explains, how kindness helps people scientifically...
Please watch at below Link.
A Wonderful Book on Kindness
Conclusion
Opening your eyes means noticing when others are suffering. A kind word, a smile, opening a door, or helping carry a heavy load can all be acts of kindness.
Celebrating someone you love, giving honest compliments, sending an email thanking someone, telling someone how she or he is special to you, helping an elderly neighbor with yard work or food, taking a photo of someone and sending it to the person, sharing homemade food, refusing to gossip, and donating old clothing and things you don't need are all ideas about how to practice kindness. Kindness is a willingness to full-heartedly celebrate someone else's successes. Kindness is openly be happy for the other person's hapiness and well being in life .
Kindness is also about telling the truth in a gentle way when doing so is helpful to the other person. Receiving accurate feedback in a loving and caring way is an important part of a trusted relationship. The courage to give and receive truthful feedback is a key component of growth and flexible thinking.
Kindness includes being kind to yourself. Do you treat yourself kindly? Do you speak gently and kindly to yourself and take good care of yourself?
Simple acts of kindness of helping people in daily life go in long way, particulary brings a lot of positive transformation. Particularly, during these periods of pandemic times, one should listen with heart and help others with both the hands, whatever the possible way.
Kindness will have a wonderful ripple affects, the recipient of kindness also helps others, then those Others to some more Others....Then, that Helping Each Other Chain goes on and on.....!!
Ultimately, Kindness also may returns to Self in one's life time and also may be in Multitudes ......!!
So. Be Kind to Others, as almost everyone in life is struggling one way or other...
Your simple act of Kindness will help someone or may impact their life positively and also may bring complete transformation in one's life,
MM Rao
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