So first of all, there is this picture that is circulating on my Facebook page...
Just wow. Where does the time go?
This year was a great adventure for me. I did so much, and yet (to be completely honest) I feel like I did so little.
In February 2014, I took a huge chance and managed to accomplish my goal of traveling 20 states in only 18 days while committing over 1,500 acts of kindness.
It was a crazy trip of snow, car accidents, cheap hotels, and tons of Mc Donald's chicken nuggets. It was also the first time I had traveled to most of the country and I have to say, America is truly beautiful. (Seriously, get out there and road trip it--you will be happy you did.)
I tried to be clever by naming the trip, "A Kind Hart in America." (Airhart, Hart...heart? yeahhhhh....)
Our trip was actually in the shape of a giant heart, so it kind of made sense.
Anywayssssss, it was all about trying to prove that America is still a beautiful place to live, and that Americans are still kind people. But most of all it was about showing people that every little bit of kindness counts. Seriously, if each of us just strived to do a little good everyday for someone else, I think we would see some amazing things happen. That is why I plan to continue these trips--with some more thoughtful and careful planning of course ;)
Here are just a few pics of kindness from the "Kind Hart in America" trip:
100 Free Wishes by A Fountain
15 Boxes of Hot Chocolate given to a Cold Neighborhood on a Nasty Winter Day.
Quarters in Gumball Machines.
60 Stuffed Animals and Candies given to Foster Children on Valentine's Day!
After my trip I wanted to do more, but I had a hard time finding focus--which is pretty typical for me.
I tried really hard to start a mobile swap shop thrift store, where I would basically collect gently used items from people who didn't need them anymore and then give them to people who did need them, free of charge.
But life gets in the way, and sometimes we have to accept the facts. I couldn't do what I wanted to do with this project at this time. My full-time job was getting in the way. Plus, my townhouse was starting to turn in to an episode of hoarders.
I ended up donating all the items I had left over from my endeavors to a family who had a house fire, and then the rest to a church who had a warehouse where they give items to families in need for free--like I wanted to.
Even though I had to admit defeat, I kept a positive attitude and still tried my hardest to keeping spreading the kindness, the best I could.
In August, my family and I gave away 50 packs of free school supplies while spreading some Disney Magic to families at the Cagan Crossing Library.
In September I committed myself to picking up trash everyday for "Save the Earth September." I ended picking up 3,474 pieces of trash in my neighborhood alone.
For my 100th Blog Post, I announced our next big trip: Coast to Coast Kindness! I am very excited to start planning our trip from Disney World to Disney Land coming later next year. It will be all about the Magic of Kindness, and it is going to be so awesome. But more on that later, since that is really a 2015 thing, and we don't want to deprive 2014 of all of its glory.
The last "big" thing I did this year was Christmas Cards for Soldiers in December. With the help of a friend, my family put together 128 Christmas cards for Soldiers to send to Operation Gratitude.
Even though I tend to highlight the acts of kindness mentioned above, some of the most special acts of kindness from 2014 are the unspoken ones.
2014 was a great year, and I'm hoping 2015 is even better.
Have a safe and wonderful New Year's Eve, you deserve it :) Thanks always for reading.
Be Kind,
Kelly Airhart
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