Working in the nonprofit world for the past 13 years has exposed me to the phenomenon of inspirational quotes in people’s email signatures. These quotes are pleasant but confounding. I wonder: what is the motivation to add flair to a job title and fax number? Will the person go the pushy route, and tell me to do something? Will I glimpse a mantra the person repeats until it invades the unconscious?
The most popular email quote, at least in the world that I live in, urges you to “be the change you wish to see in the world.”
This quote, attributed to Gandhi, is a close approximation of a more complicated quote of his. Another quote I often see is “Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle.”
This quote is often misattributed to Plato, but the consensus seems to be that it was coined by 19th century author Ian Maclaren.
We are lucky to live in a town where there is so much kindness. I saw a huge example of this the other day at the grand opening of the Housing First apartments. The theme of the grand opening centered on the effort that went into the project.
That effort came from people who already had full-time jobs, jobs they were good at and praised for, jobs that would be considered well done without the added responsibilities of pulling our town together to build apartments.
There are also a lot of small examples of kindness. One example is the 30-some organizations who have hosted a week of kindness so far during the Year of Kindness 2017 campaign. Less visible are the thousands of unsung acts that happen each day in homes, businesses and interactions all over Juneau. These small, unplanned, unexpected acts of kindness are great because, at minimum, they put a little pep in your step. And in the grand scheme, even the smallest act of kindness can have an unexpectedly large impact on someone’s life.
I know how much kindness matters because I still carry one particular act of kindness with me, one that happened 16 years ago. I was a teenager then, one who had just been arrested for the fourth time in three years.
I decided I would be better off dead.
I tried to kill myself and ended up in an emergency room. I was lying down in an examination room wondering how I’d gotten to that point. I didn’t know what would come next, or how I would move forward. A nurse paused her examination for a moment to say something like, “You are important and you have a lot to live for.”
Then she went about her business, poking and prodding me for a few minutes before I saw a doctor.
Her words made such an impact. But why? She didn’t save my life (I was stable when I got to the ER). It isn’t that her words were so profound (I don’t even remember her exact words). She wasn’t filling some void in my life (my family and friends were all supportive and present). I believe her words were profound simply because she was being kind, and in that moment, I needed someone to be kind to me.
This memory is why I volunteer my time with the 2017 Year of Kindness steering committee. I am lucky enough to have experienced a small token of kindness that will resonate within me for the rest of my life, and I believe that all of the additional kindness shared through our work will have a lasting impact.
Despite my obsession with email quotes, I don’t really care if Plato, Ian Maclaren or Ricky Martin came up with “Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle.”
It is a wonderful message.
I can’t wait to see the acts of kindness from you all as we come down the home stretch of our Year of Kindness.
• Aaron Surma is a Juneau resident since 2016 who works with mental health organizations (including JAMHI) to add new services. Aaron is a member of the 2017 Year of Kindness Steering Committee.
