11 Callyourparents
andgrandparentsregularly
Thedaysareslowbuttheyearsare
fast,whichmeansyoushouldcheck
in withthepeoplewhomatterto
you most.Pickingupthephonefora
check-inanda chatisa nicedepar-
turefroma quicktextmessage.
12 Senda pizza
fromfaraway
Ordera boutiquepizzaorfavourite
take-awayandhaveit deliveredtoout-
of-townfriendsdealingwitha birth,
deathoranothermajorlifeevent.A
deliciousfooddeliverywillputa smile
on thefacesofpeopledealingwitha
majorlifeeventwhooftendon’thave
timetositdownfora nicemealduring
a hecticperiodintheirlives.
13 Donatebabyclothes
Youknowthoseinfantclothesthat
yourbabyoutgrewinweeks?Pass
themalongtoanewmumordad
whowillbegratefulfortheworn-in
andheartfeltpresent.Theycanthen
passitalongtoanothernewmother
orfatherwhocancontinuetopayit
forwardwithinthenewparentcircle.14 Bea jobskills
matchmaker
Thinkabout two people whose
professional or job skills may
complementeachotherandintro-
ducethemoverdinneratyourhouse.
Thisisa nicewaytointroducepeople
whomaynothavemetotherwise.
Andwhoknows,maybethenext
best-sellingbusinessventurewillbe
bornrightunderyournose.15 Swapseatsonpublic
transportation
Ifyou’reona crowdedbusortrain,
andyouseea familygetonboardand
startlookingforadjacentseats,offerto
movesothatparentsandkidscansit
together.Theymightbetooshytoask
outright,butchancesare,theywon’t
turndownthe opportunitytosit
together.Simple Acts of KindnessSheep Flock to School
A French primary school has enrolled 15 sheep in a bid
to avoid closure. Jules-Ferry school in Crêts-en-Belledonne,
a small village of fewer than 3500 people, was told that it would
have to scale back its lessons because of falling pupil numbers.
So a local herder escorted the sheep to the school where they
were officially registered. theweek.co.uk51