Kindness “ROCKS!”

9-29-2021

          My father-in-law once said as he grew old, “The days drag, but the years fly.” I was probably in my forties when I first heard him say that. Now, decades later, I believe I have a better understanding of his words. The past eighteen months, during the evolution of our time with COVID, have showed just what those words mean. It seems like only yesterday we heard that term for the first time, while now each day takes an eternity to get through. We’ve all lost those friends and family we have known and loved.

          During this time, I came upon something that brings a brighter light into my life. I have no idea what it is actually called, but briefly, what’s occurring is finding painted rocks that people have left to be found. To those who’ve not come upon this, it might sound strange, yet it is a simple gesture of giving away smiles to strangers and never knowing who received your gift.

          A person paints a small rock, often with some humorous picture or artistic motif, and then leaves it somewhere to be found. A park, on a trail, or anyplace a person might wander by and see it. Some people find the little hidden treasures, look at them, smile and move on, while others pick them up and take them home. Either act is ok with most rock painters. The goal is to make someone smile. The artistic skill of rock painting varies, with some basic and others very much works of art.

          In the last six months, I’ve taken up the activity. Without question, I’m no Matisse, but the more rocks I paint, the better I get. Like writing, it is an endeavor learned by doing it often and  gaining skills. I’ve painted and left two or three dozen rocks in the past half year. It’s always fun to find my way back to the spot where a rock was left and note that someone has found and taken it. I always think, I hope they enjoyed the find and that it brought a smile.

          There are Facebook groups for rock painting. People post pictures of rocks they’ve painted or found. Some are amazing works of art. I follow two groups–Arizona Rocks and another called Kindness Rocks. For me, the most important aspect of the group is the support and friendliness that everyone shows. Check out the groups, you might like them.

          The examples of rock painters are something far greater in importance than the actual rocks that are created. Many of my writing friends and I have shared how difficult personally the past eighteen months have been. To put it in a vernacular understood by all—COVID sucks! And the opposite of that is Kindness “ROCKS!” Living in Tucson, we see huge murals, signs and bumper stickers with a common message, Kindness Matters. It does matter and it always has.

          Anger, frustration, and inappropriate behavior sit close to the edge of many of us. I’ve witnessed outbursts and mean-spirited remarks often in the last months. I believe in part it is related to all the negative events, in so many spheres of our lives, that have put us on edge. I know I often have to bite my tongue in order not to say something I will later regret. So one thing I do is paint rocks and leave them to be found by others. I smile when I find one, and I hope someone else smiles when they find one of mine.

          I believe not only now do we need to be kind, but we’ve always needed to. Call it paying it forward, a random act of kindness, or call it nothing, but I’ll bet you will feel better when you behave in a kind manner.

          The theme of kindness extends itself into another arena in my life. That is in writing and having many wonderful friends that also write. I’ve seen some folks who seem to feel if they support the success of others, it somehow reduces what success is left that might come to them. It almost sounds like, “If you are a successful writer, if you sell lots of books, then it will take away my success in writing and my selling books.” That maybe a bit of an exaggeration, but to a degree it is true. An example. Writers need and depend on reviews for their published work and often ask those who’ve read their work to leave a review on Amazon or Good Reads. Some will, of course, yet others will take twenty minutes to tell you they are too busy to write a review that takes ten minutes to complete. It takes little time and costs nothing to share a positive word about another. That includes writing reviews for books you’ve enjoyed. Kindness, like love is in endless supply.

          Speaking of books, I just finished a very good writing book entitled Get Published in Literary Magazines by Allison K. Williams. The book was loaded with very practical information about how to get your work published. She wrote about picking the right magazines, how to submit your work and offered many other useful tips. In addition, she repeated many times that a person needs to be generous regarding other writers. Seems there is a theme here. Post on twitter that you like their work, encourage others, support them every chance you get.

          Be kind–Be Generous – Kindness ROCKS!

Louie’s Book Bark

          If you enjoy poetry, accessible poetry, the kind you can understand, read Scribbled In The Dark by Charles Simic. It is a wonderful small book of beautiful writing. One critic said this of his work, “His poetry… is comic and elegiac in measure. It has an Old-World sensibility… that he pins to a New-World lightness of heart.”

Be Kind, Go well.   David