Just do it..

Just do it...no I'm not talking about the shoe commercial, I'm talking about doing something just because.  Send flowers, bake cookies, write a letter, whatever, practice random acts of kindness and do it without expecting anything in return.  It's one of the nicest feelings, in my opinion, to do something for someone out of the blue, just because you want to and then see their look of surprise after it's done.   It doesn't have to be anything major or costly, sweep a neighbor's porch or take their trash can in for them one evening, share your flowers with them. Whatever the gesture may be do it with the expectation of..nothing in return, it's a selfless act of love and giving and that is what makes it even more important. When you do something with the expectation of getting something back, then I feel that you diminish the importance of the act, you aren't doing simply as a kind gesture, you are doing it because you have an ulterior motive, you want to be recognized by that person for what you have done, and you want to be noticed by them, and that kind of cancels out the selfless nature of the act. The thought of knowing that you helped that person out or made them smile should be thanks enough and should be your payment.  I've been able to do this recently and was able to help out two good friends of mine, kind of like a mini domino effect, simply because I was willing to do photography work for one of them and accept a trade instead of a payment to help the other get something they had be wanting for quite awhile, all done very quietly and with minimal people involved, it doesn't need to be a big production, the whole world doesn't need to know about it. (I told you all to show an example of how you can involve more than one person, I won't give names or any other details, they aren't important). I didn't think of myself, instead I was willing to give up payment and pass the benefit over to someone else.  So you see, even multiple people can benefit from one kind act.  Next time you see someone you know take a minute to think what you could do to make them smile and then, if you can just do it, don't expect anything in return, go on your way, and alot of times you find that you end up being rewarded in ways you didn't expect or imagine.