Just be.

            I am a firm believer that the little things matter. When I’m feeling bad and someone smiles at me, it lifts my spirits. A simple text message wishing me well or someone asking how my day went makes a huge difference. What’s even more rewarding, though, are little acts of kindness for strangers. When I first heard about random acts of kindness, it really resonated with me. I love giving to people and making their day better, and I find it even more rewarding if it’s an anonymous act.

            When I receive no recognition for my kindness, I feel that it’s more real. The act isn’t something I’ve done as a means of influencing how others perceive me, but something that I did simply because I could and because it would make someone else smile. Increasingly, I love being anonymous. It takes away the burden of who I’m supposed to be and what others might think of me and simply allows me to exist. It’s funny to me, that in a sense of invisibility I am able to truly express myself, especially when so many fight against invisibility and strive so vehemently to be heard.

            What it really comes down to, I believe, is confining approval and support and judgment to yourself, and yourself alone. If I am able to fulfilled from the things I do, regardless of what other people say or think, then that’s something pretty powerful. I guess anonymity is a bridge that helps you become that kind of person. You take the time to be yourself based on your motivations and desires, and you figure out who you are and what you want in life. Once you have that stronger sense of self, it’s considerably easier to take it into the world. It makes it easier to stand up for what you believe in, it makes it easier to disregard the judgment and disapproval of others, it just makes it easier to live your life.

            So, I do random acts of kindness, sometimes. I don’t do it because I want to be recognized as a good person, I don’t do it because I’m trying to fulfill some role or stereotype, I do it because I like making people smile. I like the thought that a simple act can change someone’s life entirely, that just doing something nice for someone else is—in some small way—changing the world. We all have one life. I don’t want to waste mine trying to see what other people think or what they believe—I want to live it as myself, making the world a better place.