Christmas Trees and Small Acts of Kindness

Thirty years ago, in Urbana, Ohio, Tracy Bild and her brother wanted to buy a Christmas tree as a present for her Mom. But that would take money, which they didn’t have.

So they decided to visit their local Dairy Queen, run by a man named Gerald Woodruff, who locals called “Jug,” to scrounge for coins in the parking lot and even in the seams of the restaurant seats. This was somewhat fruitful, but not enough to buy a Christmas tree, which were being sold in the Dairy Queen’s lot.

But Mr. Woodruff (or “Jug”) noticed what was taking place. Known as a kind man, he gave Tracy and her brother a Christmas tree. He called it “the best tree in the lot.” Tracy joyfully brought it home.

But the story doesn’t end there.

It turns out that Tracy and her family maintained a friendship with “Jug” for the rest of his life. Although Jug is recently deceased, she still socializes with Jug’s family from time to time.

Kindness isn’t something we expect, but we do privately crave it. It even has some interesting qualities. According to the experts,

• Kindness begets kindness
• The more kindness we get, the better our lives become
• The earlier we receive kindness, the better our lives become

There’s also a kindness hormone called “oxytocin.” It makes people smile, as it does the recipients of smiles. It even changes our biochemistry.

Sounds contagious to me. All we have to do is smile at others, and extend acts of kindness to them, as soon as we can.

And perhaps go looking for a Christmas tree, whether we have the money or not.

It just might lead to a lifelong friendship.

“Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays” from the Make Life Good Team.