Little Kindnesses

Here are a few little things I've noticed people doing in the last couple days that made my day a bit brighter:

* The teller at the bank sorted through all the bills he was handing me to make sure he only gave me crisp new ones.

* At the ice cream stand the cheerful fellow behind the counter pulled out one of those nice tasting waffle cones without me having to ask for it. It didn't cost any more either.

* The vehicle I was taking home today stopped ten minutes down the road and pointed out that they weren't going all the way to the last stop where I needed to go. "That's okay," I said. "I can get something else from there." "But then you will have to pay a double fare," the driver said. That was when I realized they weren't going to charge me for the distance already covered, and happily changed vehicles.

Yesterday I was reading some posts on a great blog about Swedish language and culture www.transparent.com/swedish and read one from a Swede living in Japan. She says that Japanese people have been very concerned asking her if she is okay as there aren't any earthquakes in Sweden. I think that shows a remarkable concern for others in the midst of personal suffering.

All these little things have gotten me thinking about what I can do to brighten someone else's day and show a bit of extra concern.