By JADE CAMPBELL
Editorial Editor
In this day and age, kindness can seem like a rare commodity.
The horrible happenstance and the worst of humankind are broadcast on every social media platform, and-dare I say it-the news can warp our perception of society; however, society is not exactly like these sources portray. We can see good evidence of that here at Northwestern Oklahoma State University.
While the small-town college experience leads to some letdowns in terms of entertainment and excitement, it lends itself to the generosity and kindness of locals and college students alike.
I have lived in both bigger cities and smaller towns, and I can say with certainty that people give out more small kind gestures in a small town than in a big city. Drivers slow to let you pass, papers are picked up when dropped and there are generally people who will offer a kind smile when needed.
At Northwestern, we are lucky to have the staff and student organizations that we do. These people hope for each student to succeed in the field they wish to succeed in and attempt to help along the way.
This is a wonderful experience that we, as Northwestern students, get to have, but it doesn’t give us an excuse to not be kind. If anything, it should encourage us to follow in the footsteps of the examples we have. With these fantastic examples comes the ability of others to imitate them. Our faculty and student organizations have set the path that we as students should follow. They have done a wonderful job of setting up events and welcoming students onto campus at the beginning of this year. I believe they will continue to do a great job as the year goes on.
While we follow their example, we need to make sure that we can focus on the right kind acts to do. Students might not have the influence of a faculty member or a member of a club that is putting on an event, but there are still things we can do.
I am aware of the cheesy saying, “A smile is cheap”, and while it is irritating to hear, it is representative of the truth. Not everyone wants or needs a random stranger to smile at them as they walk down campus sidewalks, but maybe a person needs someone to pick up something they dropped or tell them that they look nice today, or some people may just actually need a smile directed toward them.
You just need to make sure that you are aware of the people around you and see if you can make their day just a little bit better.
It doesn’t have to be strangers either. One of your friends may need a coffee or a fun discussion. A sibling may want a phone call or gift. Small gestures can be for the people we care about too.
All of campus should work on being kind, even though we have lots of kind people already, but I also say this to myself. I know that in the past I have thought that I am a kind person, but then I stop and think and cannot recall any kind gestures I had done in recent memory. It is a personal goal of mine to think about others more often, and help people in need, and I would like to share that for the rest of our campus.
One must also keep in mind people’s happenstance as they go about their acts of kindness. Small acts that you think are nice may irritate other people or not seem as appreciated as you hoped.
Bad days happen to everyone, and if someone is having a rough time, they may act in a way that surprises you. This shouldn’t discourage anyone. Take in their reaction and aim to do better the next time in recognizing what other people need. Nobody can get every small act of kindess right, but they are still worth doing.
Our community may be generously kind, but we can’t let it stop there. We must all continue to spread small kind gestures throughout campus and wherever we may head after we graduate. While kindness may seem like a rare commodity, it shouldn’t.
Want to write your own article for the newspaper? Contact Jade Campbell at njcampbell96@rangers.nwosu.edu.