Ron gives us all a mission for the weekend

I don’t want to talk about shootings at newspaper newsrooms.

I don’t want to talk about Supreme Court vacancies.

I don’t want to talk about a reasonable immigration policy.

All of these are very important, but discussing them ad nauseam make me feel powerless and a bit hopeless. So on a Friday in the summertime in the great Pacific Northwest, I’m going to give you a mission, if you choose to accept it.

Do something unexpectedly kind for a stranger this weekend. It could be a grand gesture like singing in the choir at the Opening Ceremonies of the Special Olympics or something small like over-tipping a server that might not be having the greatest day. Pay for the person’s coffee in line behind you. If you have your eyes open, an opportunity will present itself. Take it.

At this point, I’m tempted to cite a study on how kindness is good for you and releases all the feel-good endorphins in your brain and the brain of the recipient, but you already intuitively know that, right?

So if you love to bake, bake someone a cake. If you can paint, give away a small piece of art. If you’re handy, fix your neighbor’s thing-a-ma-bob that needs fixing. If you’re well off, give away enough money that you had to pause for a second and double check that you want to give away that much money. But give to another person, not an organization. Look them in the eye. It really does help you just as much, if not more, than it helps them.

I tried it for myself and can endorse the concept. I’m tempted to tell you what I did, but it doesn’t really matter, does it? That’s between me and him. You do you.

Being kind in the face of frustration is a uniquely human practice. It knows no party affiliation or creed or gender. It elevates and brings us closer together.

To some of you, this will sound sappy, but even the cynical should do something kind this weekend.

You won’t regret it.

You can hear “What are we talking about here?” everyday at 4:45 p.m. on 97.3 FM.