I went for a walk on Sunday along a path in the woods. It was a beautiful sunny day, with birds singing in their nests and flowering trees coming into bloom. Going around a bend in the path, I saw a bench and decided to sit down for a few minutes and drink some water.

Then I noticed that there were words painted on the bench, but I was too far away to read them. My first thought was that some annoying person must have spray-painted a rude message. Definitely not what I wanted to see when I had been enjoying a nice relaxing walk!

When I got closer, I discovered that the words said “BE KIND” in neat white lettering.

That was a very nice surprise indeed. It left me feeling more hopeful about the world, and it gave me two useful reminders, not just one: Be kind, and expect more kindness from others.