Back in May I blogged about Kindness Weekend in the Mount Washington Valley. You can scroll down below on the right and find the post if you're interested. But today I want to share a bit of history leading up to Kindness Weekend, pick up where that weekend left off, and give you a glimpse of what's next!

I met Mikayla in 7th grade health class when she was 13. I was teaching a unit on growth and development ... and she was being a feisty teenager.

I liked her instantly. I felt like I had known her forever. Funny how that happens with some people. A few years later, she participated in the Teen Clinic Peer Education Training Program. Eventually, I hired her to work with me in the Teen Clinic and Community Outreach Program I ran. That's how we got connected and came to participate in Kindness Weekend together.

But there is a whole lot more to Mikayla's story. I got to witness it as she was going through something no teen should ever have to experience. But I also got to witness a transformation that goes beyond my ability to put it in words.

So I'll let Mikayla tell you about it herself. Here is Mikalya's story of how she got to where she is today ...and how she'll get where she's going next ...

Overcoming Adversity: Mikayla's Story

To read more about the big blue bus and Mikalya's kindness project visit www.kindnessmiles.com

Special thanks to Positivty Nation for granting permission to share A Year of Positive Action with you on this blog! Visit them at www.positivitynation.com

A Week of Positive Action: Give someone a hug!  

Don't underestimate the power of human touch. Whether it is your kids, your parents, a sibling, a friend, or just someone who really seems a little “blue” or is going through a tough time, this small gesture could really turn  someone’s day around...and it doesn't cost a thing!  Give it a try!

We need 4 hugs a day for survival.
We need 8 hugs a day for maintenance.
We need 12 hugs a day for growth.
~Virginia Satir

This past Memorial Day Weekend was the 1st Annual Kindness Weekend in the Mount Washington Valley where I live. The Teen Clinic Peer Educators were joined by Michael Chase, author of Am I Being Kind?, and they hit the streets to give out free hugs. At the end of a day of random acts of kindness, including free hugs, we all came back to share our stories in a Kindness Rally. Check out this story about the power of a hug.

A group of teens I am connected with shared the story of their Free Hug station set up on the corner of Main Street. The donned their iHug pins and held up their signs and offered free hugs to passersby. They met with some resistance at first. They reported back that only about 1/3 of the people they met accepted their free hug offer. One person yelled, "why the hell would I want a free hug!" They persisted. About 2 hours into the morning, three girls came running back to tell me this story.

They were walking down the street holding up their signs, Mikayla leading the way. From about 50 feet away, a woman saw the sign and headed toward her with outstretched arms. Mikayla put her arms out as they walked toward each other and met in a huge hug. The woman held on tight and Mikayla felt her crying. When they pulled away the woman shared that seeing that sign was not at all what she expected on Main Sreet that day ...but it was exactly what she needed. The day before she had lost her best friend to a terminal illness and she was feeling quite alone. She thanked the girls for their Free Hug brigade and then all four of them embraced in a group hug. Seritonin levels flying high and four lives touched forever.

Needless to say, as their energy rose, the free hug campaign got stronger. Their success rates rose and they became more confident that hugs could really make a difference to strangers. They focused their Kindness Campaign to not just strangers on the street. They targeted the "bank ladies" and a whole host of people that serve them during their day to day lives. They delivered hugs and smiles and thank yous to the banks, retail clerks, wait staff, and service workers all along Main Street. Then they got in their cars and headed to the Mall to deliver some more hugs and random acts of kindness.

I hear from a good source that a year long cross-country Kindness Tour is being planned. And it all started with a simple hug with a stranger. Stay tuned for the launch of www.kindnessmiles.com ... coming soon to a community near you!

Am I Being Kind? Can that one simple question really change the world? According to Michael Chase, and according to sponsors, planning committee members and participants in this week's Kindness Weekend in the Mount Washington Valley of NH, it most certainly can!

The weekend kicked off with an evening lecture by Michael Chase, also know as The Kindness Guy. Michael is the  founder of The Kindness Center and author of the book, Am I Being Kind? He told his story. From abusive childhood to high school bully to an encounter with a turtle in the middle of the road that literally changed his life and set his course on Kindness.

Michael shared that when an act of kindness is done, the doer experiences an increased seritonin level in the brain. Seritonin is the "feel good" chemical. The result ... happiness. He then explained that the receiver also experiences a rise in seritonin levels and also feels good. The best part is that even an observer of an act of kindness experiences a rise in seritonin as well.  So one simple act of kindness ... shared, received and witnessed ...  is really a win, win, win.

After a standing ovation and lots of hugs, the Kindness Coordinator, Michael Kline invited the crowd to come back to the park for coffee and dessert and to experience the candlelight labyrinth to enhance the Kindness experience. Some people socialized over an amazing spread of sweets. Others headed outside to experience to walk the labyrinth and release past hurts and resentments and move toward forgiveness or simply to walk in gratitude along the candlelit path toward center. An awesome experience.

At 8am the next morning,, the Random Acts fo Kindness event started with a smiley face parade as over 400 ballons and a whole bunch of human smiles made their way down Main Street to the Kindness Tent in the park.

Kids, teens, adults, coworkers, families, community leaders and Valley visitors gathered before the Wall of Kindness, selected their activities, picked up their kindness supplies that had been donated by valley businesses and went on their way!

As the hours ticked by the energy under the tent rose to a level that was palpable. People returned to the tent to share their stories of giving out cups of coffee, smiley face ballons, free hugs, seeds to plant and a host of other gestures of kindness. And then, as if addicted to the seritonin, they made another visit to the Wall of Kindness, charted their next course and headed out once again.

A group of teens I am connected with shared the story of their Free Hug station set up on the corner of Main Street. The donned their iHug pins and held up their signs and offered free hugs to passersby. They met with some resistance at first. They reported back that only about 1/3 of the people they met accepted their free hug offer. One person yelled, "why the hell would I want a free hug!" They persisted. About 2 hours into the morning, three girs came running back to tell me this story.

They were walking down the street holding up their signs, Mikayla leading the way. From about 50 feet away, a woman saw the sign and headed toward her with outstretched arms. Mikayla put her arms out as they walked toward each other and met in a huge hug. The woman held on tight and Mikayla felt her crying. When they pulled away the woman shared that seeing that sign was not at all what she expected on Main Sreet that day ...but it was exactly what she needed. The day before she had lost her best friend to a terminal illness and she was feeling quite alone. She thanked the girls for their Free Hug brigade and then all four of them embraced in a group hug. Seritonin levels flying high and four lives touched forever.

Needless to say, as their energy rose, the free hug campaign got stronger. Their success rates rose and they became more confident that hugs could really make a difference to strangers. They focused their Kindness Campaign to not just strangers on the street. They targeted the "bank ladies" and a whole host of people that serve them during their day to day lives. They delivered hugs and smiles and thank yous to the banks, retail clerks, wait staff, and service workers all along Main Street. Then they got in their cars and headed to the Mall to deliver kindness.

As for me, I had to man the tent ... but I got to affirm that Michael was right about "oberserver seritonin". As each team came back and shared their stories, my energy rose. And from where I stood, as teams headed out, i watched as they came across their first kindness victim. My heart swelled as I watched a 6 foot teen get down on his knees to tie a balloon on the wrist of a 4 year old and then stand up and hand the mom a flower and reach into his pocket for a bone for their dog.

Kindness all around!

Lives were touched. Some forever. Stories were exchanged at the Kindness Rally
and the energy of kindness weekend lives on. At the end of the day one of the kids told me she didn't want it to end. She told me that she didn't want to go back to her "unkind" home. She told me she wanted to quit her job, buy a Kindness Van and be a Michael Chase groupie. I suggested she wait a week to let things sink in before making any major life decisions.

She agreed ... and then suggested we go for ice cream to keep the seritonin flowing for just a little bit longer ... which of course we did :)

To get a supply of iHug buttons (we distributed about 500 this weekend!) visit www.heartset.com

IHug buttons are a great conversation starter around hugging. Wearing the button indicates that the wearer is open to giving and receiving hugs and allows potential receivers to accept the free hug offer. Our experience is one over the awkwardness, hugging becomes addictive and seritonin flows! 

For a list of kindness ideas visit:
http://www.kindnessweekend.com/acts-of-kindness-ideas.html

To get a copy of the book Am I Being Kind or to book Michael Chase for an inspirational event for your school, business or community, visit The Kindness Center at www.thekindnesscenter.com

Consider how you may be able to save a life.

Will you sign an organ donor card… donate blood… or join the bone marrow registry? Maybe you will volunteer for a crisis hotline, donate your time/talents to a battered women’s shelter, or support an anti-bullying campaign.

We are all, in some way, capable of saving a life…what action will you take?

A Year of Positive Action is shared with permission by Positivity Nation. Visit them at www.positivitynation.com or like them on Facebook to get daily quotes and insights on approaching your days with positivity.

I also want to let you know that plans for the Mount Washington Valley's Kindness Weekend are in high gear! Visit www.kindnessweekend.com for details. I hope you will consider joining us in our beautiful Valley to spread the kindness wave!

 Seek out and share good news. 

It’s true, we don’t need to look far to find negative news stories in the media.  I also believe it is true that there is a “good news” story in every community – even amidst natural disasters and difficult situations.  

So the challenge to you this week is to make a deliberate effort to find one of these stories --whether from your community or somewhere on the other side of the globe -- then share it!

Post it on your facebook page, share it with your co-workers, your teen, your family.  Ask them to do the same.  This is a powerful way to spread the epidemic of positivity! 

Grateful to Positivity Nation for giving us permission to share. Visit them at www.positivitynation.com

Also, don't forget Kindness Weekend in the beautiful Mount Washington Valley, NH. Visit www.kindnessweekend.com for details. Even if you can't join us, be sure to check out the website for what you can do to spread kind in your own place in the world!

It's an amazing day in NH! The sun is shining, the sky is clear and the loons are back on the lake! Here's the view from where I'm sitting, The green from where I sit has not quite caught up with the picture ... a couple more weeks ... but you get the idea!

I have to get out there and welcome the loons ... but first I'd like to share some exciting news!

The Mount Washington Valley Chamber of Commerce will be hosting Kindness Weekend on Memorial Day Weekend. I'm on the planning committee and I must say that this is the most amazing, kind, positive group of people I've ever had the pleasure of working with! Michael Chase, the Kindness Guy, will be joining us to help us celebrate what we hope will be an annual event!

Check out the events schedule for yourself at www.kindnessweekend.com

Check out Michael Chase's work at www.thekindnesscenter.com

For Mount Washington Valley events, lodging information check out the Chamber of Commerce website at http://www.mtwashingtonvalley.org/