Page 17 - July ONLINE VERSION

lets. Be that vampire slayer but snap that wooden and
splintery stake in half. Be brave and give this person an We all have a pond’s worth of kindness constantly
example of courage through kindness. working through a freezing and thawing in our hearts.
Just get a little bucket, retrieve a puddle’s worth of
Look them in the eyes, past that glossing of walls kindness from your heart’s friendly pond, and splash
which they have erected for a defense and tell them this kindness against the world. Watch the smiles nev-
There is a stranger sitting across from you on the Many fortunate people grew up with parents who with the utmost certainty that things will be okay. Yes, er freeze in the winter of global hardships.
subway. That stranger probably needs a hug or were there for them through the difficulties of you are strangers, but because of kindness, the rubric
perhaps a warm smile or friendly elbow bump in growing up. Kindness was an unconditional gift of strangers can vanish to reveal the new label of hu- What gothic nightmare would this already troubled
this time of the COVID pandemic. Even if there given from family and friends. We know how mans. This could change their day and inject a conta- world be without the celestial beacons of kindness? Let
is an unsettling absence in their eyes. They could much kindness helps, so it is important to make gious sprouting of strength into their weakened and the world never witness something so cold. Let your-
have frizzled, unkempt, and greasy hair. Their sure other people feel that as well. shriveled biceps of confidence. Embrace the monsters, selves be brave throughout your embracing of strang-
teeth could be yellow and jagged. Their limbs envelope them. Let that lonely ghost know that they ers. Revive smiles. Be that brave knight of kindness,
could be wrapped in archaic clothes that have been Kindness is a healing spell as bullying is a disman- are not alone. They do not need to haunt themselves. but wield no weapons, wield the gleaming words of
stained by the gruelingly slow passing of thousands tling and belittling curse. It is a shield against the kindness as feathery and weightless as sunlight. Do
upon thousands of years. They have been a mon- raging and raining hurricanes of this world’s nega- Be there in the middle of the subway, encouraging a this, follow these suggestions of bravery, and watch the
ster like this for a while; entombed in their own tive happenings. Kindness lets the tears of the hurt stranger who has let their eyeballs become glossed over people around you become safer, happier, and kinder.
worries. Yes, they could look scary, but, in fact, the and broken stray from their eyes and melt back with the clouds of doubt. Bat away that cloudy plating Do not only be kind to strangers but be kind to your-
scarier they look, the more likely they need that into their slowly healing hearts. Kindness is a suit of doom and bring in sunshine to that stranger. Watch self. That will sharpen and strengthen your resolve to
gesture of kindness. of armor and an umbrella at the same time. the smile that will become unsheathed upon their face change a harden world into a softer place.
like a sword. That is a sign that they will be braver
Now, this stranger does not have frizzled hair, So, this person, sitting across from you on the against their inner conflicts and such demons. Watch the power of kindness illuminate everything as
gnashing yellow shark-teeth, and disturbingly subway, may have their own monster or ghost your kindness lights up that stranger on the subway.
unset eyes. This person could be a student, a well- running amuck in their skull, pulling the strings It does not even have to be an attention getting ges- Ignore the growls and chilling howls of their monsters.
groomed businessman, a lawyer, a teacher. This of worry. It could be destroying them. What they ture. It can be a simple greeting or words of encour- Stand up, depart from your comfy subway seat, and
person is a human being, not a monster. As you sit are secretly dealing with in their own forms of agement. “You got this.” “Stay strong.” Those are cli- take valiantly placed steps towards a stranger in need
there on the subway, staring at this person across seemingly resilient silence, they cannot defeat on che, cheesy even, but let your words of encouragement with merely ten seconds of kindness. Open your arms,
from you, you start to notice how well dressed they their own. An inner conflict needs the occasional drip into the cracks of broken hearts, settle, river down open your hearts, and watch that person’s monster
are, and how well kept they appear. What you do offering of help. There is never a clear answer to every scar and wound, and dry like cement in a final shrivel, fade, and vanish in the most powerful lan-
not notice, are the monsters inside of them. any problem which causes an emotional crisis in act of selfless bravery. Walk away knowing you revived terned hue of a human’s heart. Kindness always wins.
anyone, but there is one thing that may help. a minute percentage of strength in a stranger. Go It will always calm that werewolf among us. It will al-
There could be a lonely ghost, trapped in the tower home knowing that you may have just very well made ways bring satisfaction to the sharks who crave feeling
of their mind. There could be a broken heart in someone’s day. This person may also do the same thing cared for, and no one will have to be bit again. So be
their chest. There could be an angry, frizzy haired, to a stranger in the future, starting a fearless parade of kind to that stranger on the subway.
werewolf bashing about inside their body be- spreading kindness.
cause they have been wronged. There could be a
great white shark swimming in their heart, and Kindness is not a thing of scientific wonder. People do
that beast is hungry for a word, a glance, a hint of not need to tunnel deep into the wordy realms of psy-
goodness among his fellows. chology to learn about being kind, and to learn about
how awesome it feels to have someone be kind to you.
Hidden monsters are terrifying. They slither Kindness is a powerful bravery that sprouts and grows
about inside of everyone. This modern-day world from the heart. It can rocket out from strong hearts
is brimming in a cauldron of depression and and broken hearts. It belongs to everyone, thus should
anxiety, hardship and heartbreak, sickness, and be given to everyone. Cold people are capable of giving
confusion. Hence why a different breed of mon- and receiving this golden, yet free, form of protective
sters has sprouted from the anxieties within the magic. Nicholas Leonard is a 20-year-old novelist and poet.
He has self-published gothic works such as Death
modern-day man; harmless to us, but harmful to Wears Epaulets, 40,000 Words and The Dreadful Dis-
their owners. There is a curse upon them that has Let kindness be the blade that slays and slaughters fear, turbance Of Donald Dodfrey Dawn. His works seem
never left them alone. Humans are familiar with Kindness takes no power. It takes an immense hardship, and heartbreak forever. Use this light and to be satire of situations from his life with immense
the curse of a bad day, heartbreak, and hardship, amount of bravery. Be that shivering and goose- feathery paintbrush to paint smiles upon the faces and dramatic and gloomy flares tattooing every word he
but look back on those days and see if anyone was bump ridden priest as he enters that hapless room profiles of the broken. It is never a quick fix, but it is dares to write.
there. of hellish mists and guttural growling. Be that another piece of duct tape to hold a fracturing statue
werewolf hunter but throw away those silver bul- together for one more day.

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