In the midst of the Holiday Season, the pace of life speeds up and the ubiquitous To Do List seems to expand by the second. The moments you take to pause, might just be part of the special moments you are all trying so hard to create for friends and family. My antidote to a speeded up world is to pause, with a poem.

Kindness is often on my mind and particularly during the Holiday Season. I think of the words George Saunders spoke about kindness at his commences speech delivered to the graduates at Syracuse University, 2013 and it bears repeating.


What I regret most in my life are failures of kindness.
Those moments when another human being was there, in front of me, suffering, and I responded . . . sensibly. Reservedly. Mildly.
Or, to look at it from the other end of the telescope: Who, in your life, do you remember most fondly, with the most undeniable feelings of warmth?
Those who were kindest to you, I bet.
It’s a little facile, maybe, and certainly hard to implement, but I’d say, as a goal in life, you could do worse than: Try to be kinder.

Pause and be kind to yourself and soak up the serenity and wisdom of 
8 Matter of the Heart, Ed Young.

Take time for repose
it is the germ of creation

Take time to read
it is the foundation of wisdom

Take time to think
it is the source of strength

Take time to work
it is the path to patience and success

Take time to play
it is the secret of youth and constancy

Take time to be cheerful
it is the appreciation of life that brings happiness
....
And I would add,
Take time to be kind
It is what makes the world a better place