Kindness Rocks

As I take my daily walks locally I have seen much creativity involving stones and rocks. At the beach, as I walk along the seawall I see pictures painted on the rocks. In the forests, I have found decorated stones placed along the trails, some with encouraging words, some with just pictures.

And then by a nearby church, I saw the sign above—by a little ‘garden’ they had arranged. A garden with just stones for their Kindness Rocks project. There I found a collection of small smooth stones each with just a word or two painted on them. Words such as ‘imagine,” believe,’ ‘love,’ ‘leap,’ etc. I have continued to check it every so often over the past few months. Sometimes there are many, sometimes just a few, and sometimes you have to peek through the growing grass to see them.

I read the sign and realized why the numbers changed. It is a participation project. People are encouraged to take one for inspiration, share one for inspiration, or leave one to help our garden grow. Interestingly, the church also has an organic garden with beds available to rent so that people can raise their own vegetables and donate extra produce to a local food bank.

Over the next few days, I will be sharing some of the special stones I find meaningful. As I share them I would like you to consider if they resonate with you and if you might consider a similar project in your neighborhood. As the sign says “one message at just the right moment can change someone’s day, outlook, life!”