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The "Cultivate Kindness" Plate Story
As my 50th birthday approached, I began to think about the rest of my life. Many women turning 50 “re-invent” themselves and go on to do great things. I pondered this deeply for awhile and decided I didn’t really want to go back to school, climb the corporate ladder, hike the Appalachian Trail, or scale Mt. Everest. I knew I wanted to do something to mark this milestone event.
I live in a small town in Maine and one day, while shopping at the local market, I noticed an elderly lady struggling to get a heavy item from a shelf. I immediately offered her my assistance and placed the item in her cart. The woman said, “I don’t think anyone has ever done that for me before!” I was shocked! How could this elderly lady be saying this? Is there such a lack of kindness in today’s world that she hadn’t experienced this a million times? I began to realize that small acts of kindness can have a huge impact. Being nice doesn’t have to be expensive or time consuming. What if we all made a conscious effort to show more kindness in small ways? Think of the possibilities!
That thought led me to the “Cultivate Kindness” plates. This is truly the gift that is meant to be re-gifted. There is nothing quite as nice as getting a fresh batch of brownies or cookies for any reason or for no reason at all. My goal is to help “Cultivate Kindness” by having my plates given and re-given over and over to as many people as possible. The smiles you receive in return are priceless! If I can help to “Cultivate Kindness” in this small way, maybe more and more people will take it upon themselves to do a kind deed for a friend, neighbor or stranger.
Each plate is hand painted by me personally and numbered. No two plates are exactly alike. To add meaning to the gift, each plate comes with a journal. The journal is given along with the plate of goodies and the recipient then fills out the date, town and state where they live and the occasion. The fun is in looking back to see that the plate originally may have been a wedding gift, was re-gifted as a going away present, again as a welcome to the neighborhood gift, or perhaps given as a condolence. The plate can also be registered on-line at www.cultivatekindness.com under “Web Journals” and the whereabouts of your plate can be followed and the various recipients’ comments read. When not being used, display the plate as a reminder to do at least one kind deed every day.
To help “Cultivate Kindness” even more, 20% of all proceeds will be donated to worthy charities. I hope I have planted the seed so you may “Cultivate Kindness” wherever you go.
- Jean Gervais
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If you have given or received a Cultivate Kindness Plate, please take a moment to sign the
2007 Jean Gervais. All Rights Reserved.
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Cultivate Kindness 19 Waterville Road Skowhegan, Maine 04976
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Cultivate Kindness Plates now available on the World Wide Web!
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