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Have you ever heard of World Kindness Day? Neither had we, but we like the idea!
World Kindness Day this year will be observed on November 13, 2010, the anniversary of first World Kindness Movement® conference at Tokyo in 1998 and the 35th anniversary of the founding of Japan's Small Kindness Movement, which was the seed from which the WKM grew. Today, sixteen nations are members: Australia, Brazil, Canada, Dubai, India, Italy, Japan, Nepal, New Zealand, Nigeria, Romania, Scotland, South Korea, Thailand, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
The purpose of World Kindness Day is to take an opportunity to look beyond ourselves, beyond the boundaries of our country, our culture, our race, our religion; and realize we are citizens of the world. We have a commonality and must realize that if progress is to be made in human relations, we must focus on what we have in common. When we find likenesses, we experience empathy and we can fully relate to other persons and to other peoples. We think of people from other cultures as 'different' when we compare them with our own customs and beliefs, but when we really get to know someone from a different culture we discover that despite any differences, there are more similarities.
When we ask ourselves on World Kindness Day, "Is what I am involved in promoting commonality or separation?" it reminds us of our commitment to kindness. We want to promote joining with little acts of kindness, helping to break down the walls that separate races, religions, cultures.
Be what you want the world to be. Together we can have a positive effect on those around us and be co-creators of a better world. We can move beyond ourselves, our limitations, our doubts, and realize our amazing power together. Anthropologist Margaret Mead said, "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful citizens can change the world. Indeed, it's the only thing that ever has."
The WKM logo symbolizes the universality of kindness. The blue circle represents the world. The different colored hearts of various sizes represent the diversity of mankind, with its many racial, cultural and religious strands woven together by the common thread of kindness.
On November 13th, try to do just one kind act for a stranger that will help break down just one barrier between people.
[This article was compiled from the World Kindness Movement web page at http://www.worldkindness.org.sg/default.html.]
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