The First Time I Learnt about Kindness

Me early morning in our village. My mother is behind me washing her face by the river.

Growing up, prayer was a big part of our family tradition. Before each meal and before falling asleep, my grandparents guided us to pray for the whole world. One of the most repeated prayers that I heard from anyone in my tribe for each other and for everyone in the world was to be given "kind children". Despite poverty, hardships, and daily struggles, no one asked for health and wealth before they asked for kindness.

Today, when I look back, I understand how our grandparents knew that the generations that are to come after them will need a kind heart more than anything else to survive the world.

Right now we are at the cusp of big misunderstandings, extreme fear and disillusions and the only thing that will help us and our children is kindness. It will allow us to stop making judgments, receive anger and fear gracefully and more than anything guide us to find solutions instead of finding the villian in every story.

If you have a child and you are still looking for a new year resolution for them, teach them to be kind. Let them shed tears for humans and let their hearts break again and again for people, I promise you, they will heal the world and all the broken hearts in it ❤

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#KhalidaBrohiStory