If you read last week’s column, you’ll know that Dan and I have been out of town for a little over two weeks, visiting our amazing 49th state, Alaska. A couple of weeks before we were due to leave, I caught Dan’s summer cold, a cold that accelerated at an alarming rate that seemed to portend an antibiotic.

A Saturday preemptive visit to the doctor confirmed my assessment. Still, during the examination, the doctor spotted a rather worrying spot inside my mouth and suggested a biopsy sooner rather than later. An ENT appointment was proposed, an appointment that I knew would take weeks to schedule. After the upcoming week, we would be gone for 16 days, making the idea of sooner rather than later seem like a distant dream.

Action, no matter how futile, was needed so I decided to leave a message at my dentist’s office. The office isn’t open on Saturdays, but at least my issue would be there Monday morning. Sunday morning, a lady named Chelsea called me on her way to church. She worked at my dentist’s office and, on her day off, listened to the office’s messages, decided my message was important, and called me back. Chelsea didn’t give much hope that I could get a biopsy any time soon, but the extraordinarily thoughtful Sunday phone call chipped away a little of my anxiety.

At 8:15  Monday morning, Chelsea called again, and at 10 a.m., I was having a biopsy taken at Tennessee Valley Oral Surgery. I was told it would be a couple of weeks before we had a report, but that Friday, before our departure date on Sunday, the surgery center called back and said all was well within my mouth. Being heard, the kindness of people who cared; all of it almost brought me to tears.

A while back, Dan and our friend Mike were discussing something, can’t remember what, but each was fast to their sticking point, and I found myself inserting soothing, calming words into the conversation. Mike looked over at me and said, “Don’t worry about this, there’s love in the house; we’re just having a friendly debate.”

Some drop kindness into the world. Mike’s words and the kindness of a person named Chelsea made my world a little better. As the news reports atrocities upon atrocities, mass killings and laws being broken daily, displays of kindness help one to press on, still trying one’s best, even as it feels like the ceiling is falling in.

We must all stand diligent in our beliefs and make our voices heard, but despite all the current noise, we must also stand diligent in kindness, understanding, thoughtfulness and love. Surely practicing regard for others can put dents, no matter how small, in our currently divided world.

My refrigerator is covered in pictures, quotes, poetry and sayings. As I reach for the milk or put up some food, I re-read things I’ve found enlightening or entertaining. When writing this column, I decided to look up some quotes about peace and kindness and found several that are refrigerator-worthy. I’ll leave you with a few of them.  After reading them, go to YouTube recording of Otis Redding during a London concert singing Try A Little Tenderness: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ccmveXzsls.

Crank it up, possibly dance around, and become inspired. I’ve already started rewriting the lyrics to fit today’s times.

  • “Run to the rescue with love, and peace will follow.” — River Phoenix
  • “Love is the purest form of a soul at peace.” — Matthew Donnelly
  • “Kindness is spreading sunshine into other people’s lives regardless of the weather.” — Unknown
  • “No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted.” — Aesop
  • “Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle.” — Plato
  • “Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see.” — Helen Keller
  • “A warm smile is the universal language of kindness.” — William Arthur Ward

Cindy Arp, teacher/librarian, retired from Knox County Schools. She and husband Dan live in Heiskell.

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