12 Stories That Prove Humanity Is All We Need to Make the World a Better Place

Life can sometimes be harsh to some of us. That’s why generosity and acts of service are so necessary to make the world a better place. A kind gesture may take just a few minutes and brighten up the next several days for someone.

• When my son was about 10, we passed a woman and he told her, “That’s a pretty sweater.” After we passed her, he said, “She looked sad — like she needed a compliment.” I knew then that he would be a good man. He is. sands654/Twitter
• I smiled at a guy sitting in his car eating and came back to a note on my car. I was like, “Oh no,” but it just said, “I was having a really stressful day and when you gave me a friendly smile it just reminded me to breathe, thanks.” kit_sionn_witch/Twitter

• Last Christmas, a young mom forget her WIC card at home and an old couple behind her paid her entire bill. It was $117, and they all started crying. When the mother left, I was teary-eyed as well, and the old couple said, “We have everything we need. It’s only fair to give back.” bella2k_/Twitter
• I work in a pharmacy and a lady last week gave us $50 and said, “Use it to pay for someone’s prescription who needs it.” We were able to use it later that day to help a patient whose old insurance had been terminated and new insurance wasn’t active yet. janellie57/Twitter
• Kindness leads to kindness. I saw this man eating by himself at a restaurant this morning and he was looking over at us. I asked my daughter to wave, and we went over and chatted for a minute. 10 minutes later, a server came over and said, “The man over here asked me to give this to your daughter.” peosteve/Reddit

• A man bought me a first class seat when he overheard me on the phone crying because I had been up for 72 hours traveling back and forth from LA to NY twice. I had been working cadaver labs, tired, hungry and I missed my son’s birthday. It’s the kindest thing a man has ever done for me. KalienLuna/Twitter
• My daughter is taking riding lessons, she picked the horse with one eye because nobody else does. TRIKKDADDY/Reddit

• On a cold rainy day last week, a young homeless man offered to help my husband load groceries into the car. Shivering, he asked if he could buy my husband’s coat. He gave him the coat. uncaged***y/Twitter
• I recently noticed that whenever life was getting me down, I’d usually find a dollar in my pocket the next day. I told my parents how weird it was and they told me my little sister puts a dollar in one of my pockets when she knows I’m sad to help cheer me up and now I’m crying. squidslippers/Twitter
• In elementary school, I saw one of my best friends eating pizza that somebody had thrown in a garbage can. I found out a bit later that his dad had lost his job and his family was living on the streets. My mom found out from me and bought him and his sisters lunch and breakfast cards for the year. The school lunch lady told them that they won them in a raffle. Wrest216/Reddit

• Once, I was traveling to visit my parents a few hours away. An hour into my trip, I stopped for gas (I was on empty) and realized I left my purse at home. A man saw me crying and paid for my gas so I could drive back home to get my purse. I’ll never forget him. Jheltsl1/Twitter
• My new favorite tattoo to remember my dad’s always with me, done on Monday, on the back of my arm right above my elbow, by Stella at Flow Tattoo. I love this so much. misuinu/Reddit

Have you ever done something that brought tears of happiness to someone’s eyes? Tell us in the comments!