Today is World Kindness Day, a day dedicated to kind acts that is celebrated around the world each year on November 13.
Though the day isn’t well known in the United States, it’s most popular in Japan, where it first originated— The day of kindness first originated in Japan in the 60s and by 1997 became so popular, it became a holiday, World Kindness Day, focusing on promoting international kindness.
According to www.worldkindness.org, the World Kindness Movement was initiated by Japan together with seven co-founding members namely Australia, Canada, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand, UK and the USA. The Singapore Kindness Movement acts as the World Kindness Movement Secretariat and currently has 18 members from 15 countries.
“The mission of the WKM is to inspire individuals towards greater kindness and connect nations to create a kinder world,” reads the World Kindness website. “Members acknowledge the fundamental importance of human kindness as a basic condition of a satisfying and meaningful life. They pledge to work through individual networks of each member country to build a more compassionate world.”
Today, people worldwide are asked to perform one kind act in honor of the day. Additionally, here are some famous quotes on kindness that can be used to share thoughts of kindness:
“Today, more than ever before, life must be characterized by a sense of Universal responsibility, not only nation to nation and human to human, but also human to other forms of life.” – Dalai Lama
“One kind word can warm three winter months.” – Japanese Proverb
“Constant kindness can accomplish much. As the sun makes ice melt, kindness causes misunderstanding, mistrust, and hostility to evaporate.” – Albert Schweitzer.
“As much as we need a prosperous economy, we also need a prosperity of kindness and decency.”- Caroline Kennedy.
“Carry out a random act of kindness, with no expectation of reward, safe in the knowledge that one day someone might do the same for you.”-Princess Diana.
