Kindness, we're ready
Sophomores Isa Tardioli, Sebin Park, and Esther Luvishis (left to right) hug on campus, with smiles on all of their faces. (Photo: Scarlet Armstrong)
By Claire Wu, staff writer
“Do you want to smile every day and feel that everything is going to be alright?
You know you do.”
The good news is, all it will take to make this a reality is one small act of goodwill each day, bringing kindness into the world.
At Maria Carrillo High School, students and staff could create a lovelier and merrier school environment by performing little, kind actions such as saying ”hi” to each other with smiles or throwing their garbage in the trash in consideration of others. To promote these acts, I believe that MCHS should host a Random Acts of Kindness Week every February, in the same week as Valentine's Day, the national Random Acts of Kindness Day, and Random Acts of Kindness (RAK) Week, to celebrate and spread awareness of the small kind actions, which truly matter.
Do you want to smile every day and feel that everything is going to be alright?
You know you do.
National RAK Day arrives each year on Friday, Feb. 17, during its corresponding RAK Week, which was from Feb. 12 to 18 this year. Begun in 1995 by the nonprofit organization, the Random Acts of Kindness Foundation, which is based in Colorado, RAK Day and Week have been celebrated each year since to instill the power of one small, considerate deed into the world.
Kind acts, especially the little ones, raise people's spirits more than one might think, and may stay with them for many years to come as a happy memory.
A study from the Journal of Experimental Psychology found that "participants [who gifted their hot chocolate to someone else in a park] did not expect their kind gesture to have as positive an impact as it did, and they further undervalued how 'big' the act of kindness was perceived," stated a Fortune article.
I even still remember my band teacher saying “bye” to me two years ago while I waited on the sidewalk after school to be picked up. It may have looked like an inconsequential salute to the students around me, but his farewell had made my day.
Additionally, when asked what the kindest thing someone had ever done for her was, sophomore Isa Tardioli's answer was someone unexpectedly giving her blondies that they had made.
"My unexpected gift wasn't anything special,” she said. However, she believed this present to be the most caring thing done for her because "it showed me how much they thought of me even when there is no reason to," she said. "It wasn't my birthday or any holiday." These small, warmhearted actions appear to be the kindest thing that people can do for others.
“It showed me how much they thought of me even when there is no reason to"
- Isa Tardioli
MCHS held a Kindness Week in November of 2022 this school year, with each day of the week dedicated to the care of a different entity, such as care for the earth and compassion for yourself. There were different activities to encourage students to be kindhearted, including a paper tree that over 20 people wrote warm notes for, which was displayed by the front doors of the big gym.
Although Kindness Week "got people to do acts of kindness," said Caroline Huang, a sophomore in leadership, "it could've been a bigger event." To inspire more student and staff participation, MCHS leadership could throw a school RAK Week during the week of Valentine's Day. While in the mood of love, friendship, and compassion due to Valentine's Day, students and staff members would still feel caring, and consequently, be more apt to participate in the spirit week. With its tie to the national RAK Day, the school event could also gain more awareness and involvement from the people on campus. Although labeling every day as an RAK Day may seem to encourage daily kindnesses more, the novelty of an annual RAK Week in February would give students and staff special, cherished memories of acting kindly, and keep them excited and motivated to be benevolent routinely, so that kindness doesn't become something ordinary, and eventually, insignificant.
With random, warm acts already being the best way to have goodwill towards other people, a schoolwide RAK Week in which everyone on campus helps and supports each other would effectively create a more uplifting school environment. And not only because the person receiving kindness will feel valuable and loved.
According to "Hometown Health," the Mayo Clinic Health System's blog, "Being kind boosts serotonin and dopamine, which are neurotransmitters in the brain that give you feelings of satisfaction and well-being." With students and staff consciously being friendly during an RAK Week at MCHS, they will feel happier each day, and lessen the stress that they may associate with school.
A Random Acts of Kindness Week, therefore, would benefit all of the students and school officials who participate in the event, when they are treated with benevolence . . . and when they themselves are kind to others.
If you would like any suggestions for random acts of kindness, here are five that I gathered and thought of that are perfect for brightening people's lives (including yours!):
1. Be a good listener:
Sometimes your friends, peers, and staff members just need someone who they can rant or talk to in order to lift the weight of their worries off their shoulders.
2. Give a hug:
Hug a student who seems like they might want a hug while having a bad day, or a friend, out of the blue, to remind them that you care about them.
3. Text someone "good morning" and "goodnight":
Let someone know that they are loved and not forgotten at the very beginning, and end, of a long day. It could be the key to making their day amazing!
4. Bring tissues for classroom use:
Haven't been able to find any tissues (and not towels or toilet paper) in your classrooms? Don't worry! You can bring tissues to your classrooms for everyone to use. You'll make your teachers happy because they now have the supplies for their students, and you'll be a great help to your fellow peers who might be getting allergies soon!
5. Buy boba for yourself (or treat yourself):
You are not any less important than other people to be kind to. A lot of the time, it is ourselves who we beat up the most for any slip ups. But by habitually doing something that makes you happy, you might just find every day becoming brighter!