20 Acts of Kindness for my 20th birthday

My 20th birthday did not start out very well. It was exam week at my university, so all of my friends were busy studying. I lived a 10-hour flight away from my family, so I felt upset and alone the entire morning.

I then decided that it was completely up to me to make this day special in a way I had never celebrated it before. With the help of the internet, I came up with 20 random acts of kindness I wanted to complete before my birthday was over. For example, I paid for the person in the drive through behind me, dropped off donuts for people waiting at the DMV, gave a new basketball to a little boy in a poorer neighborhood, bought gift cards to restaurants for a homeless man, placed inspiring post-its on mirrors at my university, etc.

I am sharing this story in hopes that somebody might find inspiration for their own birthday or a bad day in general and realize that it is your choice to make it a special day for yourself and many other people. I have had many fun birthdays with celebrations and great gifts, but looking back this has still been the best birthday of my life so far. – Jackie