New Zealand is the only country in the world to celebrate a nationwide Random Acts of Kindness Day.
In the genre of the movie Pay it Forward, New Zealand is all atwitter with people doing random RAKs on September 1st.
My friends and I started RAK Day in 2005 and chose September 1st because we reckoned the 1st of Spring is an easy date to remember, and after a chilly winter, we deserve a little kindness.
Each year more and more NZers have jumped on the band wagon and stepped out of their comfort zones to do something randomly kind for complete strangers, neighbours, colleagues and friends. It’s been an awesome ride so far, and there’s plenty more to come!
RAK hugs. Pic by parthisix
So if you want some fun ideas for giving back this September 1st, here are a few to get you going:
- Send a pizza to the local fire station, school staff room, friend’s work
- Give money to the café cashier to buy the next person a coffee
- Pay the bus fare of the person standing behind you
- Let someone into the traffic (!)
- Merge like a zip
- Take muffins to the office for morning tea
- Give a box of Roses to say thank you to someone who deserves it
- Mow the neighbour’s lawn
- Pick someone a flower
- Wash your partner’s car
- Put toothpaste on your partner’s brush
- Put the neighbour’s wheelie bin out (make sure it’s rubbish day!)
- Phone your mum
- Get your kids to donate their pre-loved toys to charity
- Drop clothes in to the Sallies
- Offer to walk the neighbour’s dog
- Babysit for friends so they can have a night out
- Run round the streets offering free hugs – ok that might get you into trouble!
Jump here to the RAK website and have fun on the day!
