Awareness
Lent AoK and RAKNomination Joy Warmann
Every year people around the world (Christian and otherwise) partake in Lent -‐ whether it’s giving something up or taking up something new, thousands of people use these 40 days as a chance for self-‐improvement and introspection. Last year a UK-‐based Christian organisation called Soul Action put forward a slightly different idea for lent that caught a lot of people’s attention. Soul Action proposed that rather than giving something up for lent one should try to perform a new “Act of Kindness” every day for the 40 days of lent. People were free to think of their own unique acts of altruism but Soul Action also provided a list of suggestions ranging from, paying for someone’s coffee in the queue behind you, to buying a copy of the Big Issue and striking up a conversation with the seller. Although it can be tough task to stick to for each of the 40 days, if you can help or better even just one person’s day in that time then you’ve succeeded really. Another way of brightening up someone’s day during lent can be to take part in a RAKnomination. Out of the recent silliness of NEKnominations (basically the downing of a filthy pint), has stemmed something good in “Random Acts of Kindness” nominations. If you haven’t already guessed, people are nominated to film themselves performing a random act of kindness and then they nominate others to do the same. Some examples from friends of mine include: donating a pint of blood, giving bone marrow and one has even given a homeless person a happy meal with £100 in it! There’s no limit to the acts of kindness that you can carry out with a little bit of imagination. This year, lent begins on the 5th of March so there still time to think of ways to spread some happiness until the 17th of April and even afterwards! You can read the full LentAoK list here: http://www.soulaction.org/resources/lentaok/ Then why not tweet us your ideas @iAstonMagazine
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