On the Cusp of 2016, Reflect, Be Kind

With the holiday season almost behind us and a new year on the horizon, it’s the perfect time to take a moment to reflect.
What made 2015 special? Did you accomplish a personal goal? Did you reach an exciting milestone? Buy a new home? Receive a job promotion? Get married? Add a new addition to your family?
Regardless of what your year looked like, you may notice that, when reflecting on the many memories that you created in 2015, your happiest moments all have the same underlying theme.
Love and kindness.
Regardless of our yearly accomplishments, it’s love that keeps us afloat through even the most difficult of times. And kindness? Kindness is magic. There is power in a kind word, strength in a kind act. When we are the recipients of kindness, we feel renewed and reenergized, and we remember these moments because they’re important to us. They matter.
Have you ever had a really bad day, one of those days when everything seems to go wrong, but then a friend gives you an unexpected compliment, or a stranger simply passes by and smiles at you?
Suddenly, it doesn’t feel like such a bad day anymore. It may only be a small gesture, but you feel uplifted.
That’s love. That’s kindness, and it’s all around us if we stop for a few moments and look.
What would 2016 be like if everyone chose a simple resolution for the new year: to be kind.
Can you imagine how many positive changes that we would see in our community?
Challenge yourself to commit to one random act of kindness a day. Once you get started, you’ll quickly realize that you run into a countless number of opportunities to be kind on a daily basis, and there are an endless amount of people who will greatly benefit from your compassion and generosity.
You don’t need money or a special skill set to change someone else’s day for the better.
You have everything you need within you already – your heart.
Pay for the Person Behind You
Whether you’re in the line at a coffee shop, at a fast food drive-thru, paying for someone’s order isn’t a big sacrifice for you, but it will certainly have a lasting impact on your recipient. They’ll be talking about it for days, maybe even years. They’ll walk away smiling, and more than likely, they’ll return the gift by paying another stranger’s tab in the future.
Offer a Refreshment
Take notice of the people who work hard every day to keep our community clean and orderly. The construction workers across the street will be so grateful when you offer them a hot chocolate or cider.
The crossing guards in your neighborhood will be thrilled when you hand them a cold lemonade. It doesn’t take much time or effort, but it will serve as a reminder that their work is appreciated and valued.
Listen
One of the greatest gifts we can give each other is a listening ear. Listen to your coworkers, to your friends, or even to a stranger. Ask questions. Take interest in what’s going in someone else’s world.
On any given day, most people are struggling with something. You’d be surprised at just how much you can help by simply listening.
Cindy Musterel of Somers Point works in home healthcare. She feels honored to have the opportunity to provide support and friendship to her clients on a daily basis.
“It’s not about the money,” she says. “It’s about the person in need. I give with my heart, and I share myself, and that makes me feel good.”
Be Social on Social Media
Unfortunately, it’s not uncommon to hear stories about bullying and negativity on social media, but every single day, people also use social media to spread kindness. You can use your favorite social media platform as a means to send someone an encouraging message.
Post something upbeat, and share it with your friends list. Give someone a compliment. 
Kayla Zinckgraf, 17, of Egg Harbor Township, has a chronic illness called Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome. However, she hasn’t let that stop her from reaching out to others.
 “I use Instagram to connect with other young people who are sick. I asked if anyone wanted a Christmas card, and I received a lot of addresses. One person lived in Sweden. I’ve received so many messages from people who said that receiving my cards made their whole week. It makes me super happy knowing that I could do that for them,” she says.
Reach Out
There are so many moments in our busy schedules that present us with quick and easy opportunities to reach out to others. If you see someone struggling to reach for something at the grocery store, grab it for them. Let someone get in front of you in line. Open doors for people. Smile at a cashier and ask them how their day is going. Give your waiter a bigger tip than you normally would.
George Loos of Marmora frequently works out at his local gym. While there, he makes an extra effort to reach out to new members who are having a difficult time learning how to use the exercise equipment.
“I stop what I’m doing, and I teach them how to use it. It doesn’t take a lot of time, and it feels good knowing that I helped someone,” he says.
Create a Kindness Box
Grab a shoe box, and get crafty. Decorate it to your liking. From this day forward, you’ll jot down each and every act of kindness that you experience, all of the moments that you reached out to someone else and every time that someone else went the extra mile for you. Toss them into the box, and by the end of the year, you’ll have so many great memories to be grateful for.
Anita Tsinsky of Woodbine has been doing this years.
“I’ve learned that happiness is all about perspective,” she says.
“If you focus on the good moments and make a conscious effort to remember them, you’ll be more content. I figure that if I’ve made even a small difference in someone else’s life during the year then the year was well-spent, even if it had its challenges. At the end of the year, when I read all of those notes, I feel a sense of purpose. Kindness is good for the soul. Plain and simple.”
Don’t be afraid to begin 2016 by paying it forward. 
Focus on love and selflessness. Above all, be kind.
You may just find that the new year brings you everything you hoped for and more.