The .2 in My Marathon of Kindness

Upon completing my 13th Act of Kindness, I thought about how I was halfway through the names on my list, and then I thought of how 13 always seems to be half in my book. Being a marathon runner the number 13 is kind of synonymous with half-way. From that point on, in my head, I titled my journey as my "Marathon of Kindness." Yesterday I reached the 26 mark, but as any marathoner knows, there is still that .2 to get to the finish line.

26 miles is a lot of miles to run... most would say it's too many. And 26 names is FAR too many - 26 too many, in fact. While this journey has been amazing and I'm so grateful that I made it, I sincerely wish that I never had the need to do so.

26 lives were cut short on December 14th. 20 lives were just beginning - lives that all had such great potential. And another 6 were hitting their strides - enjoying the journey of life, and helping the little ones along the way. These 26 should still be with us. Their loss was so senseless and I pray that I never have another need to do something like this again.

In saying that I'm not saying that I won't continue doing random acts of kindness, because I most definitely will. My daughter was disappointed we reached the end of our list, because she was enjoying doing acts of kindness so much. I gently reminded her that if there were more names on that list, it would have meant more lives lost. It is a VERY good thing we reached the end of the list... it was far too long to begin with. But I promised my daughter that we could keep doing acts of kindness - they just won't be as structured as they have been for the past month. She then decided she is going to spend the next month doing an act of kindness to each person in her class at school. What a cute, thoughtful little girl I have.

In researching all of the victims of the tragedy I found a wonderful organization that many of the parents of the Newtown victims have created - The Sandy Hook Promise  ( www.sandyhookpromise.org and www.facebook.com/SandyHookPromise ). Benjamin Wheeler's parents recently told how they are proud to be a part of the organization - how they are finding purpose in the unspeakable tragedy.

This is taken from the organization's website:

"This is a Promise

To truly honor the lives lost
by turning our tragedy into a moment of transformation.

This is a Promise

To be open to all possibilities.
There is no agenda other than to make
our community and our nation a safer, better place.

This is a Promise

To have the conversations on ALL the issues
Conversations where listening is as important as speaking.
Conversations where even those with the most opposing views
can debate in good will.

This is a Promise

To turn the conversation into actions.
Things must change.
This is the time.

This is a Promise

We make to our precious children.
Because each child, every human life is filled with promise,
and though we continue to be filled with unbearable pain
we choose love, belief, and hope
instead of anger.

This is a Promise

To do everything in our power to be remembered
not as the town filled with grief and victims;
but as the place where
real change began.

Our hearts are broken;
Our spirit is not.

This is our promise."

This is my promise to the Newtown 26: I promise I won't forget your names, your faces, your stories. You will live on in my heart, the hearts of my family, and the hearts of so many others in this nation and throughout the world. You may not be here with us any longer, but I promise I will do my utmost to make sure you did not die in vain.

I pledged my support to the Sandy Hook Promise, and I encourage you all to do the same.

And so, for the final .2 of my journey, today is not an act of kindness, but rather an act of remembrance. I made sure that their memory will live on in our home for years to come. I created an angel ornament I had seen someone make shortly after the tragedy. I took a clear ornament, attached some butterfly/angel wings and a halo. Then I took little slips of paper with each of the victims' names and ages on it and slipped them inside, and said what I have come to associate with each of them as I did so:

Charlotte Bacon: Stubborn animal lover; Daniel Barden: Musical future-fireman; Rachel D'Avino: Perpetual Student/Amazing Aide; Olivia Engel: Jane of all trades; Josephine Gay: Peanut butter Boo; Dawn Hochsprung: Raging bull book fairy; Dylan Hockley: Beautiful butterfly; Madeleine Hsu: Reading runner; Catherine Hubbard: Animal lover; Chase Kowalski: Amazing Athlete; Jesse Lewis: Little soldier/Big Heart; Ana Marquez-Greene: Musical flower; James Mattioli: Hungry caterpillar; Grace McDonnell: Beach bum; Anne Marie Murphy: Arms of love; Emilie Parker: Big sister extraordinaire; Jack Pinto: Sports fanatic; Noah Pozner: Future scientist; Caroline Previdi: Silly Caroline; Jessica Rekos: Cowgirl CEO; Avielle Richman: Mighty girl; Lauren Rousseau: Angel; Mary Sherlach: Understanding soul; Vicki Soto: Super hero goofball; Benjamin Wheeler: Speedster; Allison Wyatt: Young Rembrandt

They will join us every holiday season, and we will remember the stars that blinked out too soon and the angels that ascended to heaven on a cold December day. They will always have Christmas in our home.

http://www.sandyhookpromise.org/
http://www.facebook.com/SandyHookPromise

26 Acts of Kindness - Day 26

Today's Act of Kindness was in honor of Allison Wyatt. Young Allison, or Allie as she was called, was a sweet, somewhat shy little girl. She was smart, creative and was developing a wonderful sense of humor. Her parents said she could be silly one minute and then make an observation that was so funny they would be crying with laughter.

Allie was kind-hearted and anyone who spent any amount of time with her adored her. She had her two grandpas wrapped around her little finger. She loved her teachers and her family. She was a great big sister who helped teach her younger sister how to ride the school bus.

Allison was a helpful and giving little girl. She would happily help her mother with the gardening and she loved to do acts of kindness for her family and friends. She even once shared her snacks on a plane with a complete stranger.

Allie was a little artist. She loved to paint and turned her home into both a studio and a gallery. Her art was plastered all over the walls. She made the world a more beautiful place for far too short of a time.

I've mentioned several times how my amazing friend, Julie inspired me to start my acts of kindness. For today's final act I am taking a page directly out of her book. When she wrote about her final act of kindness it was so perfect that I simply couldn't imagine ending this journey in any other way.

Since Allie was a budding artist, today my husband, my son and I went to the store and picked up two art kits. We then drove over the Clackamas Town Center, a mall on the other side of Portland. This mall definitely wasn't the closest mall to us - we probably passed four other malls on the way there - but I had a reason for picking it.

Only a few days before the tragedy at Sandy Hook a gunman walked into Clackamas Town Center and opened fire on the patrons trying to get their Christmas shopping done. Two people were killed, and a young teenage girl who was on her way home from school (she walked through the mall every day to get home) was hospitalized. It sounds terrible to think of how much worse it could have been - any life lost to such senselessness is one too many... and then came Sandy Hook in its wake.

I felt that since such a terrible thing happened at Clackamas Town Center just last month that it could use a bit of something good happening at it as well. We walked into the mall and immediately found ourselves in the children's indoor playground area; I suppose we picked the right entrance. I looked around for a child who was about 6-8 years old.

My gaze soon fell on a little girl who was sitting on the bench next to her mother. She was probably about 8 years old and looked a bit bored. I'm guessing she was too old for the play toys and was waiting there while her younger sibling played. It looked like she could use a little cheering up. I approached her and her mother. I knelt down in front of them and asked her if she liked art. She smiled shyly and said she did. I held out the watercolor painting kit we had brought and told her I was out doing acts of kindness and I wanted her to have this art kit and I hoped she enjoyed it. She looked at her mom questioning. Her mother nodded her head and I handed her the kit. Then I asked her if she could do something. I handed her the other kit and asked her if she could find another child to give the second kit to. She grinned, turned to her mother and said "Oh! Could I give it to ____?" Her mom nodded and said that would be good. The girl thanked me quietly and the mother graciously thanked me as well.

I walked away in search of my boys.

I love that for this final act of kindness (again, the idea was all Jules's!) I handed the baton off to another family. Gave them the chance to help spread some joy as well, and hopefully that will be just the beginning of their journey.

And it was so fitting that it was in tribute to the young artist, Allie, who loved to do acts of kindness. Thank you, Aliie for making the world a more beautiful and kind place, just by being yourself.

"When one person is thoughtful to another, the thoughtfulness gets carried on and on.
It is like a river of kindness, once blocked by rocks,
That is suddenly opened by a single person's kind thought or act.
The river runs freely again, and continues to flow,
Moving more rocks and reaching the hearts of others.
When one person is thoughtful to another the thoughtfulness gets carried on and on.
The more we get together and help each other,
The more friendship there can be throughout many different places.
The friendship can begin like a small stream in a single neighborhood.
And then expand throughout a river of districts, states, countries, and even continents.
When one person is thoughtful to another, the thoughtfulness gets carried on and on.
Soon, we could have a whole ocean of friendships, and that's how the world was created
And how it should always be."
-Mattie J.T. Stepanek
 (1990-2004)

26 Acts of Kindness - Day 25

Today's Act of Kindness was in honor of Jessica Rekos, age 6. Little Jessica loved orcas. She did "research" on them after watching Free Willy last year, and her dream was to see one in person one day. She was able to fulfill that dream this past fall when her family traveled to SeaWorld. If Jessica loved orcas, she absolutely adored horses. She loved reading about them, drawing them, writing stories about them, and especially riding them. She wanted "real" cowgirl boots and a cowgirl hat for Christmas. Her parents promised her a horse of her own when she was 10. She'll never have the chance to get that horse, but a few weeks ago a horse was rescued in Jessica's honor, and named Rekos. I bet that made Jessica smile.

Jessica was the first born, and adored her two little brothers - one of whom is only months old. Her parents called her the "rock" of their family. She was their "little CEO," she carefully thought out and planned everything. Her parents joked that she was smarter than both of them put together. Her mom told a story about when Jessica was just a toddler and was throwing a temper tantrum, her mother threatened to throw Jessica's princess shoes away if she didn't stop. Well, tiny Jessica was too smart to let that happen. When her mom walked down to the basement, Jessica slammed the door behind her and locked it, ensuring the safety of her princess shoes.

Jessica's mother, who is also a teacher, said she always felt incredibly lucky to be Jessica's mom.  Her parents have promised to keep their daughter's memory alive by talking about her every day and living for her. They promised to make sure her little brothers know what an amazing big sister they had. And Jessica, it seems, left a message for them. Just days after her death her mother was going through her belongings and found a journal that she had no idea her daughter was keeping. Inside was a note that read, "I love you so much Mama. Love, Jessica."

It would seem that I should do something horse related for the little equestrian cowgirl - and I did a bit - but when I read she loved orcas that stuck out to me, because an Orca is the mascot of my children's school. I conceived an idea of making a tribute to Jessica that my kids' school could keep and display.


So I decided to try my hand at sculpting with polymer clay. I've never sculpted anything out of that before (wax yes, polymer clay, no) so it was a bit of a learning curve. I sculpted an orca jumping out of the water. I tried thinking of how I could pay tribute to Jessica, but then I realized I should honor all of the victims in this act. I etched all of their names into the black of the orca, and then filled the rest of the area with little designs of what each person loved (a hamburger for James, waves for Grace, a flower for Ana, a puppy for Charlotte, etc.) and then swirly patterns to fill in the rest.

I also bought a couple of books that we could donate to the school that I thought Jessica would love: Black Beauty, and a few Fairy books - the Whale Fairy and the Horse-Riding Fairy. I had to wait for the books to arrive today before I could deliver the goodies to the school. They finally showed up at 3pm, and we put some "In memory of Jessica Rekos" stickers in them and then got down to the school as fast as we could. But we missed the office hours. =(

We ran into my kids' music teacher in the parking lot, and she complimented the orca and told us we could probably take it into the work room if we needed to leave it today. We thanked her and walked into the school. The kids who were there for after-school care were just lining up from recess. They all saw the orca and started oohhing and ahhhing, saying how cool it was, and asking if they could they see it closer, so I let them look at it until their teacher told them it was time to go inside.

My daughter showed me how to get into the work room inside. When we got there there were two of the staff there. One happened to be my son's teacher from last year. She asked if she could help us, and I told her I just needed to leave the orca and the books for the school - that they could do with them what they chose. I explained how we were doing 26 Acts of Kindness for the Sandy Hook victims, and this was number 25, for Jessica, who loved orcas. I showed her how all of the names of the victims was in the sculpture.

Tears filled her eyes as I explained it all. She told me she couldn't read the card on it right then or look at the names too closely or she'd break down. She said she has been affected from the tragedy - as I'm sure all teachers have. She said she would take the orca and the books to her room to keep them safe over the weekend and would deliver them to the office on Monday. She told my daughter what a wonderful thing she thought it was that we were doing... and then she had an idea. She said she thought the whole school should hear about why we did this and that it would be a good idea to have my kids share the orca and explain about their experiences doing acts of kindness on the in-school news broadcast they do every week. My daughter nodded, saying she was all in for that idea.

Maybe this Act of Kindness will reach hundreds of kids. Maybe some of those kids will take the message home with them and begin their own acts of kindness, or tell their parents and maybe they will do an act of kindness for someone...

That's a lot of ripples. But, it was an orca, after all.

Jessica, it seems you've made quite the splash. ;-)

"Remember there's no such thing as a small act of kindness. Every act creates a ripple with no logical end." -Scott Adams

26 Acts of Kindness - Day 24

Today's Act of Kindness honored a true hero, Victoria Soto, age 27. Vicki Soto was many things to many people. She was a daughter, a big sister, a niece, a best friend... but at Sandy Hook she was simply Miss Soto. She was a beautiful young woman, with long brown hair and bright blue eyes and a wonderful future ahead of her.

Vicki loved the color green, collected flamingos in all shapes and sizes, and adored her lab, Roxy. She still slept with her teddy bear, and loved The Little Mermaid. Her college roommate described how, when a boy she liked came over once, Vicki blasted the song "Kiss the Girl" from her bedroom in the hopes the young man would take the hint and make a move on her friend.

And that's just how Vicki was. She was an irrepressible goofball, who said she never had any intention on growing up. Her youngest sister's last memory of Vicki happened two nights before her death. Vicki was teasing her about not knowing what classes she should take in college and the teasing escalated into  them throwing candy at each other and their mom telling them to stop because the dogs would eat it and get sick.

But despite being a child at heart, Vicki was serious about her work. She had wanted to be a teacher since she was a teenager and she was always very directed in that goal. She was a double major in college and graduated with high honors. Her instructors said she always absorbed everything they said, but then would come up with ways to relay the information to kids of all different levels and aptitudes. The teacher she did her student teaching under said Vicki had raw talent and instinct and that, despite her 30 years of teaching, she learned more from Miss Soto than she ever taught her. The day Vicki got the job teaching first grade at Sandy Hook she called her aunt, who was also a teacher, and was bursting with excitement.

Vicki was always striving to be a better teacher. She stayed late after school creating billboards and lesson plans, or picking up books at book fairs. She was going back to school to get a Master's degree in learning disabilities - not because she wanted to be a special ed teacher, but because she wanted to be better at helping each and every one of her students reach their fullest potential.

After the tragedy I heard a gem of wisdom somewhere... I really don't recall when or where... something that stuck with me, and something that I noted to tell my kids about the whole scenario. It, fittingly, came from Mr. Rogers:

"When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, 'Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.' To this day, especially in times of 'disaster,' I remember my mother's words and I am always comforted by realizing that there are still so many helpers – so many caring people in this world."

On that horrible day it took only one person to ruin so many lives - to show us the very worst of human kind. But, in the wake of those actions, we were also witnesses to the very best of humanity.

Miss Soto became a super hero that day. She hid her kids in a closet, some under a desk and more behind a partition, and then she did the unthinkable. She boldly stood there, all alone, and faced down what she surely knew was her death. There is no doubt she had heard what happened in Miss Rousseau's room next door, and yet she did not hesitate, she did not waver. She bought her kids time, and she ultimately paid with her life. Sadly, she could not save all of her "angels" but her quick thinking and bravery did save the majority of her class - 13 children are alive today because of Miss Soto.

So, in tribute to Miss Soto's selfless act of protector, I decided I wanted to do my Act of Kindness today for some other protectors.

The 26 lives that were cut short certainly weren't the only victims that day. The rest of the students and staff of the school will surely have to face tough times ahead. But I think that morning will always haunt the  police officers and other first responders who answered the call. I can't begin to imagine - nor do I want to - what they went through that day. One officer told little Olivia Engel he loved her as he held her in his arms while she passed away. They fully expected to need ambulance after ambulance to transport the wounded... and then, heartbroken, they realized there was no need.

The Newtown Police Department and other agencies that responded are requesting to the Governor of Connecticut that they should be able to file for treatment for post traumatic stress disorder. Well, they certainly deserve at least that. And they deserve our thanks.

This weekend I will write a letter of thanks and condolences to the Newtown Police... but for today I honored another group of officers.

One lesson I learned today: Police officers are unbelievably hard people to do an act of kindness for! My friend, Julie, also tried to do an act of kindness for the police and found out the hard way they're not allowed to take gift cards (as it is seen as a "payoff"), no matter how well intentioned or random it is.

I knew that going into this, so I called my friend whose husband is a deputy in the sheriff department and picked her brain a bit. Could they accept movie vouchers? Nope, same thing as the gift card. What about food? Could I bring in bagels or cookies or something? Sadly, they likely won't eat it, because the climate of the world today is such that they can't trust someone walking in off the street and doing a good deed. How do they know I'm not the girlfriend of someone they just put in jail and I've come to seek revenge by lacing cookies with something?... Sigh.

I decided I'd just have to be a little covert and sneaky, and mysteriously leave some Starbucks gift cards on some cops' parked cars. So I got some gift cards, put them with an Act of Kindness note and into ziplock baggies (it's Oregon, rain is inevitable) and then I left for a long run. I told my husband, as I ran off, if he got a call from the jail that it was because I'd been busted for doing an act of kindness. He promised he'd bail me out.

I first ran down to the county sheriff offices... and discovered that they park every single one of their squad cars behind a gated area. Darned it! I contemplated just throwing some gift cards over the fence and hoping they would find them, but figured I'd try the local police department before I got that desperate.

So I ran down to the police department. I got stopped at some traffic lights kiddy-corner from the police station and I spotted a squad car parked in the parking lot. Hallelujah! But just as I was crossing the street a policeman came out of the building toward the car. Shoot! So I circled around the little mini mall adjacent to the station while he drove away. I saw another couple of squad cars, and just as I was going to go over to them another policeman walked out of the building. Seriously, it was comical at this point. It really shouldn't be this hard to do something nice for police officers. I circled the block again, and the next time I came around no one was in the parking lot, and several police cars were parked there, so I stealthily put the gift cards under the windshield wipers of the cars, terrified the whole time they were watching me on some kind of surveillance equipment and would come arrest me for tampering with police property. Thankfully, they didn't. I ran away (literally... maybe it's good I ran because then there's no license plate to track!) and was nervous every time a cop car passed me the rest of the run home.

I hope that the officers who get those cards are appreciative and actually use them! I have a feeling Vicki would have been snickering away at my antics today, had she been watching me from above. It seems like the kind of thing the brave goofball teacher would have appreciated.

Thank you, Miss Soto - Vicki - for teaching us that super heroes do exist and that love wins in the end.

"No one has yet realized the wealth of sympathy, the kindness and generosity hidden in the soul of a child. The effort of every true education should be to unlock that treasure." - Emma Goldman 

26 Acts of Kindness - Day 23

Today's Act of Kindness pays tribute to Benjamin Wheeler, age 6. Ben lived his six short years at full speed. He was bursting with enthusiasm and energy and ran headlong into everything he did. Ben loved to play soccer and would often still be running the field after practice had finished. He had been taking swimming lessons and was excited about his newfound ability. 

Ben loved lighthouses, bacon and eggs and the Beatles. Ben was born in Queens and it seems part of that heritage never left him. He loved to ride the train in New York. He didn't care about museums or concert halls - young Ben always wanted to ride the subway when they went to the city to visit.

Ben idolized his big brother, Nate. Their parents say both boys had enough energy to fill the house with the sounds of four children. Ben had recently told his mother that, while he still wanted to be an architect when he grew up, he also wanted to be a paleontologist, because that's what Nate wanted to do, and he wanted to do everything with his brother.

Ben was born into a musical family. Both of his parents are in music and theatre, and Ben had a pitch-perfect voice and was learning to play the piano. At a recent recital his grandfather recalled how he bolted out of his seat and ran to the piano, he held still just long enough to play his piece, and dashed back to his seat. That was just Ben, always in a rush - there was simply too much life to live. His grandfather used to say that Ben would go places, he would make a difference in the world. His mother said that she never imagined that the difference he would make in the world would be because of his death.

His mother, who writes and sings children's songs, wrote this lullaby - A Star in the Sky for her sons. It was played at little Ben's funeral, and by the time the last note hung in the air there wasn't a dry eye in the church. And just recently twenty-six new stars were added to Newtown, as a past resident donated six larger copper stars and twenty smaller ones to adorn the roof of the Newtown Firehouse, as a permanent reminder of the brilliant lights that went out all too soon.

For our Act of Kindness today I decided to combine several of the passions in young Ben's life, since he was so full of passion. I found a model kit for a metal lighthouse (I figured since Ben wanted to be an architect and loved lighthouses he would have been fascinated by it) and a Beatles t-shirt. 

My plan was to hop on the Max light rail train (Portland's version of the subway) and give the items to two random people. However, I was having a bad MS night and wasn't feeling very good, so I sent my husband to act as the messenger again, since he's found he loves participating in these acts as much as he can.

He reported back when he got home: He got on the train and began looking for people that might like the items he had. He found a man quickly who seemed like he might be a Beatles fan. My husband approached him and asked if he was. The man replied, "Yeah," while looking hesitant, like he was afraid my husband was trying to sell him something. My hubby handed him the shirt and explained we were doing an Act of Kindness in honor of Benjamin Wheeler and this was for him. The man's eyes lit up, a huge grin appeared on his face, said what an awesome thing to do, he thanked my husband and promised he would pay it forward. My husband couldn't find anyone who seemed to fit the lighthouse so he left it on the seat, and hopefully someone who it will be perfect for will find it.

I asked him to do one other thing when he got off the train. The train tickets are always good for two hours, and since all he did was ride one stop up and one stop back, there was still over an hour and a half left on the ticket. I asked him to just tape the ticket to the ticket machine so the next person who came up to buy a ticket could use it. Well, my husband didn't seem to think that was good enough for Ben. He came home with a picture of the the Acts of Kindness card and the train pass he taped to the ticket machine... it was a pass for a whole week. I have no words. 

Ben, thank you for sharing your passion for life, and may we all learn to live life at full force.

“When I was 5 years old, my mother always told me that happiness was the key to life. When I went to school, they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. I wrote down ‘happy’. They told me I didn’t understand the assignment, and I told them they didn’t understand life.” ― John Lennon

26 Acts of Kindness - Day 22

Today I honored Lauren Rousseau, age 30. Lauren had been having a hard time for the past few years, but this past year everything in her life finally seemed to be coming together.

Lauren graduated with a Master's degree in education in 2006, but because of the economy and recent teacher layoffs she was unable to find a permanent teaching position. She spent the years since then filling in as a substitute teacher when she could and working other jobs, like being a barrista at Starbucks. In the midst of this she was diagnosed with a thyroid issue and had to have surgery.

This past year things started going right for Lauren. She had found love - she met a man named Tony and they had just celebrated their one year anniversary and were talking about moving in together. In October Lauren finally was able to land a full-time teaching job, with the principle Mrs. Hochpsrung to thank. It turns out Lauren had been a student of the principle's husband years before and was still considered a family friend to the Hochsprungs. Lauren was hired as the building substitute teacher for Sandy Hook Elementary, meaning she would show up there every day and fill in where she was needed. She didn't get benefits and made only $75 a day, but she was thrilled to finally be teaching every day. Being a teacher had always been her dream job. Her mom recalled Lauren, as a child, placing her stuffed animals on the floor and "teaching" them on her mini chalkboard. On December 14th Lauren was filling in for a teacher who was out on maternity leave.

Lauren loved music, dance, and theater. Before she was working full time she would take the opportunity to see musicals on Broadway during the Wednesday matinees, when tickets are less expensive. She loved her cat, and she and her boyfriend were talking about adopting a dachshund together. She also loved Harry Potter and the Lord of the Rings. She and Tony had plans to go see the Hobbit with another friend on the night of her death - she had even baked cupcakes with the characters' faces on them to celebrate her friend's birthday.

Lauren's dad said that Lauren was like a kid in many ways, and that's why she loved working with them. She was always smiling... or if she wasn't she was trying to get someone else to smile. One friend called Lauren "faithful, thoughtful and ridiculously fun."

During her eulogy Lauren's friends repeatedly referenced her as an angel, and told how that's even how she signed her text messages with a little angel emoticon. 0=)  One friend said that Lauren's angel wings grew fully here on Earth so that she could fly her little ones to Heaven.

We really don't know what happened in Lauren's classroom. But I have no doubt that she did what the other teachers did and put herself in front of those in her care. And there is no way that I could do 26 Acts of Kindness and not do one for teachers.

Six brave women gave their lives trying to protect their students, and I believe this is how the majority of teachers would have acted in the same circumstances. They devote their lives to helping children - and it certainly isn't for the money. They shape the minds of our kids, teach them about all that is right in the world... and sometimes have to explain that things don't always go as we'd hope. And, though it's definitely not in their job description, they protect those that are most precious to us when we can't be there to do it ourselves.

So, in honor of Lauren the angel, I found a little Willow Tree teacher figurine  - an angel holding an apple. I purchased two of them, attached our Acts of Kindness cards to them and wrote little notes on the back saying "thank you" for all that teachers do. I picked up the kids from school today and we delivered them to their classrooms.

Neither of their teachers were there when we dropped off our gifts, but I hope that when they find the angels they will be touched, both by the random kindness and also by Lauren's story.

Thank you, Lauren... and teachers everywhere.

"I've seen and met angels wearing the disguise of ordinary people living ordinary lives." - T. Chapman 

26 Acts of Kindness - Day 21

For today's act of kindness we honored Grace McDonnell, age 7. We actually got to Grace's name last weekend, but I had an idea of what I wanted to do for her that required a little trip, so we didn't have the chance to do it until today.

Young Grace, or Gracie as she was called by many, seems to be the quintessential girly-girl. =) As I was reading about her I couldn't help but think she had so much in common with my daughter.

Gracie's favorite colors were pink and purple and she loved anything sparkly. But she also had a spitfire personality and loved to tease her older brother. She was a fashionista and was having a ball learning both dance and gymnastics. She was the "light" of their family - her mother shared her last memory of Gracie: the morning of her death, as she drove away in the school bus and blew kisses. And the weekend after, as her mother had just taken a shower and came out to find a peace sign (that Gracie always loved to draw) and the words, "Grace loves Mommy" etched on the bathroom mirror.

Grace loved art and especially painting. When her parents first saw their daughter's tiny white casket their hearts plummeted, but then they saw a white canvas waiting for beauty. They took Sharpies and, with Grace's brother, they filled the white with all of the things Grace loved: ice cream cones, cupcakes, pink ribbons... and the beach.

If there was something that Grace loved more than anything else it was the beach. She adored her summer vacations spent with her family on Martha's Vineyard. She loved lighthouses, seagulls, hunting for seashells, and building sand castles.

In her eulogy the priest compared her to both a lighthouse and a seashell. Little Grace would be the light guiding her loved ones now. And just like a seashell, the memory of Grace would the the beautiful remains of something that was gone too quickly.

After the funeral, and despite their grief, Grace's parents went out and did their own act of kindness. At the restaurant where they ate that afternoon they paid for every customer who came in that day to have a cupcake in Grace's honor.

For Grace's Act of Kindness I felt I needed to go to the beach. The Pacific is just over a short hour drive from our home. So I decided to take my kids and their friend, who were all off of school for MLK Day, to the Oregon Coast for the day. We spent part of the day in Tillamook - eating cheese and ice cream - I'm sure Gracie would approve of that. And then we drove up to my favorite beach in Oregon - Cannon Beach.

My idea for today's act of kindness was based on two things. First: I knew Gracie loved hunting for seashells, but I have a feeling, had she ever been to an Oregon beach she would have LOVED hunting for Japanese floats.

Japanese floats are glass spheres that were commonly used to keep fishermen's nets and other gear afloat in decades past. They were most commonly used in Asia, and have a habit of washing ashore in the Pacific Northwest (following the tsunami we actually had a huge cement Japanese dock wash ashore here last year). The floats come in a variety of colors, and are beautiful treasures if you are lucky enough to find one. They are becoming less and less common to find anymore because most fishermen are now using plastic floats.

The second basis for this act of kindness is this: As the number of floats washing ashore dwindled one local glass-blowing artist, displaying his own act of kindness, decided to do something about it. He went about creating thousands of glass floats and having "float fairies" hide them along the stretches of beach surrounding Lincoln City, OR. So now, people come from all over and walk the miles of beaches in hopes of finding a beautiful glass float left behind from the float fairy.

I have a feeling Gracie would have adored searching for glass floats, and would have been thrilled to ever find one. So while we were out today I picked up a Japanese Float (they can be found in local souvenir shops), along with two shells - one pink and one purple - for Gracie's favorite colors. I attached an Act of Kindness note to the float and on the back explained that whomever found it should take it home and then pay it forward.

Then we drove to Cannon Beach. I chose Cannon Beach because it has a lighthouse - something that Grace also loved. I found a nice spot that was sheltered from the waves, but was visible enough to be seen by people passing by. I left the float and the two seashells in the sand there, with the lighthouse in view... just waiting for someone to find it.

I hope that Grace enjoyed our act of kindness in her honor today and that, like the lighthouse, she guides the right person to her special float.

"Thousands of candles can be lighted from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared." - Buddha