The importance of kindness

This half term, we have been pulling together our lessons on being a ‘kind-hearted crusader.’  Above all else in this crazy world, we want our children to know that being kind matters.

It has been an inspirational voyage of discovery for us.  We have learnt about Martin Takek, a mountaineer trapped in a crevice on Mount Denali.  A combination of rescue workers and unpaid volunteers, chipped away at the ice for 15 hours to reach him and pull him out.  As a result of their actions, he is alive today to tell the tale.

Another particularly touching story came from Mount Elbrus.  A group of Lebanese climbers befriended a children’s ward in a hospital.  During their climb, they took time to video call the children, sharing their journey with them and encouraging the children to continue their personal battles in the form of the treatment they were undergoing.

There have been smaller acts of kindness too.  A dentist gave free treatment to an American woman who was about to climb K2 because a stranger in New York had been kind to him once.  She then went on to raise their country’s flag at the top in recognition of the kindness of the people who lived there.

Mountaineers climbing Kilimanjaro took the time to describe their surroundings to the blind climbers in their team, to try and help them to know the beauty of their special surroundings.  “How do you describe the magnificence of a sunrise to someone who has never seen it, or a puffy white cloud that cannot be touched? How do you explain the enormity of the massive towering glaciers that line the route to summit, or the massive volcanic vent in the crater?” asked one sighted climber.

Are these not the kind of people we want our children to look up to and learn something from?  It is important to hear these stories.  They give us hope and help us to feel inspired.

So in a world where tales of unpleasantness and mistreatment of one another abound, why not find some inspiring stories of kindness to share with your children? It might just change the world.