EDITORIAL

Small acts of kindness can make the biggest difference during difficult times

There is plenty of stress and hardship going on in the world right now due to the pandemic and everything associated with it. On the surface, it can be hard to tell what people may be going through in their lives. Thus, this year more than ever, it is important to be understanding and show a hand of kindness.

In a complicated year like this one, bad days seem to be even more commonplace. Whether it be stress from school, work, or life and general, people tend to have many conflicts in their personal lives that may be hard to recognize at a glance. A small and simple gesture of kindness has the potential to change the entire course of someone’s day. Your thoughtful action shows them that someone really does care and is thinking of them, which means more than most people realize.

In reality, it is unrealistic to expect everyone to be on kindness alert all day everyday, but it is still fairly simple to be kind to the people you interact with on a daily basis, as there is no gain in being mean to another person.

Even if you are having a bad day, that should not hurt the way you treat others around you. There is no excuse to be or mean to someone if they haven’t done anything to deserve it. It honestly doesn’t take much energy to be friendly to other people especially since people are going through a lot right now. According to the University of California Berkeley, half a dozen studies with over 100,000 respondents have found that many people are experiencing worse mental health problems, such as stress, anxiety, PTSD and depression, compared to before the pandemic.

With COVID-19 still on the minds of everyone, along with the abundance of stress from life in general, people are more prone to feeling down than ever. The pandemic and everyday life don’t mix well at all and many people could benefit greatly from a little bit of kindness shown their way.

This dark time period in our lives has unfortunately rubbed off on many people. At the start of the pandemic, people were pulled out of their lives and thrown into a new sense of reality. That kind of change is difficult and hurts some more than others.

People need a little kindness shown their way now more than they ever have. It doesn’t need to be a big gesture of kindness but just a small show of friendliness can be very beneficial to another person.

GRAPHIC BY HAYDEN COLES

SPEAKUP What are some random acts of kindness you have experienced?

Kyle Kaegi freshman “Someone holding the door opened for me, or if I drop some money they’ll give it back to me”

Reygann Wilson sophomore “It’s just simple (like) people telling me that they like my outfit or something small. It’s not a big thing but it makes my day.”

Rosemary Anderson junior “Sometimes people compliment my hair or smile at me in the hallway. One time someone zipped up my bag when it was open.”

Michael Adams senior “Seeing the sticky notes was interesting. I liked seeing the messages on the walls, in the stairwells and even in the black box. It was really nice to see.”