Tuesday, October 29, 2013

A Kindness Revolution





Instead of anti-bullying campaigns,
let's have a
Kindness Revolution,
teach children to have compassion
for babies and animals,
for the disabled and vulnerable,
for other children
and for themselves.

Let's hold workshops in every school
where kids share who they are
and the pain they carry,
so all may see
that each of us has 
our challenges, our fears,
our own burdens and heartaches.
Let's teach them to look each other in the eye,
human to human,
to reach across the divide 
of perceived differences,
to honor the samenesses 
of being human
in this world.
Let's teach them to say, 
"I see you, friend,
and I'm here for you."

Let's take our Revolution to the streets,
march singing, holding placards that say
Occupy Kindness,
through the main street of town, 
drums beating, smiling, singing,
inviting the homeless, the elderly,
the abandoned and unwanted animals
to join our parade.

Let's make a place at our table,
in our worlds,
in our hearts,
for Hope, and then
serve it up in heaping spoonfuls
to every child who needs a hug,
every oldster who needs a smile,
every homeless dog who needs a friend.

If we hold a Kindness Revolution,
and everybody comes,
the bullies will all be transformed
into children in pain,
who have lost their way,
to whom we'll hold out our hands
and invite them to the party.

Kids, the video above is about the KindActs movement, centered in Vancouver, B.C., founded by Brock Tully, whom I am proud to call my friend since 1980. Brock has devoted his entire life to spreading kindness in the world. He holds an annual Kindness Concert, which totally rocks out with great feelings, and has programs happening in the schools to help kids get back in touch with their hearts.  I love what Brock says in the video: "Bullies are not bad people. They have just lost touch with their beautiful hearts."

Posted for dVerse's challenge: to write about bullying for Anti-Bullying Awareness Month. I think the only way bullying can stop is when there is enough love that the pain stops, inside the hearts of those who bully. And that takes all of us.

Namaste.

21 comments:

  1. Wise words, Sherry. A Kindness Revolution is the best kind of revolution I can think of! It could work miracles in this world.

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  2. nice...i like your flip of the script....we are often known by what we are against more than what we are for...and we need to teach them what to do as much as we need to teach them what not to do....

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  3. To be FOR kindness! To stand up and teach it! It requires more than one teacher I think, though in the past my students put in major debate time to say why it was not possible. I think that time was not wasted as it put out the very ideas you embed in this poem.

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  4. Great poem, Sherry! You are so right. This should begin at home, and should be reinforced through schools and organizations. We all need to be kind, and to promote kindness. Love this.

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  5. neither science, nor technology...the world is in dire need of poets to give positive charge...a fantastic write up Sherry, as usual...

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  6. I love a kindness campaign ! Great!

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  7. Sherry, this has cheered me up no end. Thank you for putting it to our attention. All good things start small...let's hope this movement rolls.

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  8. I love the revolution ~ Such an uplifting message to bring to everyone ~ Thanks for sharing this with us Sherry ~

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  9. A kindness revolution is one that will bring about change in a world of chaos...a new vision for the next generations.

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  10. What a wonderful idea Sherry! Let's transform hatred into compassion and understanding. I tend to think that deep down bullies also have thei issues.

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  11. oh i like....Kindness Revolution sounds wonderful... not anti something but pro in the other direction... it's always more fruitful...

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  12. Occupy Kindness needs a hashtag and a movement for sure! LOVE this. So good.

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  13. This is why poets and dreamers MUST become educators.

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  14. Kindness revolution started.. love it

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  15. What a beautiful poem and sentiment. I want to join the revolution.

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  16. You make such a good point here, Sherry. Instead of focusing on the negative which only serves to amplify it, start that revolution. Yeah!

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  18. A positive approach is often better than a negative. And a bully is often someone who has no self-confidence or has been treated harshly. (but not always, some are just so so spoiled)

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