Each week we spread newspaper across the table, pour out a bag of smooth stones we have collected on walks, and she immediately claims the “best” ones. We use craft paint and carefully paint messages:
You are loved.
You matter.
Be brave.
We let them dry, lined up like tiny declarations of hope on the windowsill, and throughout the week we take them into the world.
We leave them on park benches, near the library entrance, outside coffee shops downtown, and tucked carefully along sidewalks we walk every week.
There is something powerful about sending love out in to the world, especially with all the divisiveness in our country right now.
Dayton is a place built on small gestures. Our city is filled with neighbors who wave from their porches, strangers who hold doors, shovel sidewalks, pass along recommendations for the best donuts or the coolest parks. Sometimes we forget that community isn’t just the big events, it’s the ordinary moments of care that stack up over time.
We hope someone finds one of our rocks on a day that feels heavy. Maybe a tired parent spots “You are doing great,” outside the grocery store. Maybe a teenager sees “You matter,” on the way to school. Maybe it just makes someone smile for half a second.
I do know this: it has changed something in us. My daughter walks a little taller afterward, proud in a way that had nothing to do with being praised. I am reminded that love doesn’t have to be loud or expensive or wrapped in red bows.
This year we plan to scatter kindness far and wide. I hope it keeps traveling.
This column is by Pamela Chandler, a local mom who writes about motherhood and family. Reach out to her at thechandlercrew3@gmail.com.
KINDNESS ROCKS GROUPS ONLINE
CWPD Rocks: facebook.com/groups/1850925405151362
Dayton Ohio Rocks: facebook.com/groups/1498976760122987
Kindness Rocks Ohio: facebook.com/groups/1274466279972604
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