Dear Claire

What strange times we live in: possible impeachment; never-ending Brexit; and now a general election. It sometimes seems that we are more divided than ever.

The week after next marks World Kindness Day, and I wanted to share some words from the American comedian and talk show host, Ellen DeGeneres. At the end of every one of her shows, she says, ‘Be kind to one another’. You might know that a few weeks ago she was spotted enjoying an American football game in the company of the former president, George W. Bush. And she immediately found herself in the middle of controversy about choosing to spend time with her political and ideological opposite.

This is what she said on her next show, and I think in these times it is a really important message:

“I’m friends with George Bush. In fact, I’m friends with a lot of people who don’t share the same beliefs that I have. We’re all different, and I think we’ve forgotten that that’s OK that we’re all different. … Just because I don’t agree with someone on everything doesn’t mean that I am not going to be friends with them. When I say ‘be kind to one another’, I don’t mean only the people that think the same way you do. I mean be kind to everyone.”

 A couple of years ago we wrote about World Kindness Day and its purpose of helping us ‘look beyond our differences and realize we are citizens of the world’. We also gave some suggestions of little things you can do in the spirit of kindness. Let’s hope that as we move towards Thanksgiving and the holiday season, we can all be that little bit more kind to one another, no matter who.

Much love,
Sam