As I prepare for our Religious Exploration program for this coming Sunday, I am choosing to continue our focus on kindness. Of course, the idea of kindness is peppered through every lesson that comes out of our Unitarian Universalist values, and at this time in history I want to ramp it up. Let me share with you the excellent story that we will be reading in our classrooms this week. It is normal to think about kindness only in terms of a single “act of kindness.” But when we talk about living our faith and placing love in the center of all we do, what we are saying is that kindness should be a regular part of our everyday lives. Not an every-once-in-a-while thing!

The Parable Of Cookies, Kindness, and More Cookies!
~author unknown

A young lady was waiting in the airport’s departure area pending her flight home. After realizing there was a delay, she bought a small bag of chocolate chip cookies to enjoy while she waited.

She made her way to the VIP lounge to sit and relax. She sat down in an armchair to enjoy her cookies and read her book.

Beside her sat a pleasant young man reading his book. The bag of cookies between them. Neither spoke. The young lady took her first cookie. Then, much to her surprise, the young man also took a cookie.

He said nothing. She said nothing but was clearly bothered. He did the same for each cookie she took. Again, no words or looks were exchanged, but her anger grew. This continued until there was only one cookie left.

Then the man took the last cookie and divided it in half – leaving her half in the bag.

Well, that was it! She was so infuriated and bothered by his lack of consideration that she packed up her things and moved. Soon, she boarded her flight, took her seat, and began to settle in for her trip – still very upset by this young man’s lack of manners.

She then went into her purse, and suddenly, she felt her heart sink. There, in her purse, was HER bag of cookies – unopened and untouched! The young man hadn’t been taking her cookies; he had been kindly sharing his cookies with her! She was full of regret but also overwhelmed by the kindness he had offered her. 

This young man had generously shared HIS cookies without saying a word. He even gave her half of his last one. He wasn’t upset or worried about her actions. He was just incredibly kind.

What can we do to try to see the good in others and not make assumptions?  We talk about this when writing a classroom group covenant, we say something like  “assume good intentions.”  In this climate, it’s a hard but necessary thing to strive for. When you are on edge and unsure of what the future holds, it can be healing to focus energy into doing good, for yourself and others.  

As Unitarian Universalists we surround ourselves in concerns of social justice. One of the things that I know I can do, without any help, with no concern about what happens tomorrow, is to be kind today.  

This Sunday, the children will be making KINDNESS COOKIES and our RE Families will be hosting coffee hour. These are acts that can seem like something so little, but they are a way for us to keep kindness ignited and shining within our communities. This light will always shine outward, and I feel like it’s very catchy!

NO BAKE KINDNESS COOKIES (makes 1 dozen)

2 tablespoons of butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup of brown sugar
3 tablespoons milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup of chocolate chips
1 1/2 cups oat flour (To make oat flour, simply grind rolled oats in a blender or food processor until they are a fine powder.)

Directions 

• Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
• In a large bowl, melt together the butter and brown sugar. This should take roughly 1 minute. Whisk together, then add the milk and vanilla.
• Once the wet ingredients are combined, add the oat flour and salt, stirring until just incorporated. Once the dough has formed, gently fold the chocolate chips.
• Using a cookie scoop or a tablespoon, measure, and scoop 2 tablespoons of dough into your hand. Roll into a ball, then place it on the lined baking tray, and press down into a 1/2-inch-thick disc.
• Repeat the process until you’ve used all of the cookie dough. Top with additional chocolate chips if desired.
• Allow to set in the refrigerator for a minimum of 20 minutes. Enjoy!
• Place cookies in individual bags and hand out to people 
• These cookies can be kept covered and stored in the fridge for up to 10 days.

* If your dough is too wet or dry add in more oat flour or more milk until you get stoppable dough.

With Sparkles of Kindness,

Robin