Hello everyone. Welcome to this edition of Haibun Monday. Today the haibun is all about kindness. Plain and simple – kindness. We all could do with some kindness in this harsh world. So…Let’s have at it. “Whoever you are, I have always depended on the kindness of strangers.” That famous quote by Blanche Dubois in A Streetcar Named Desire. So many quotes about kindness.

One of the kindest creatures I know is…Winnie the Pooh. He gives us the most simple of quotes: “A little consideration, a little thoughts for others makes all the difference.”

The other day, I was driving along when I realized, my back tire was going ka-thump, ka-thump! I realized I had a flat tire. I pulled over on the side of the road and just said, what next? I got out of the car and opened the trunk and pulled out the spare and the jack and lug wrench. I began working with the jack and it wouldn’t work! I groaned. I stood by my car – waiting. After about 20 minutes, a real beater of a car pulled up and a ragged looking man got out. But he was smiling and asked what was the problem. I thought about waving him on but, I was so desperate I said I had a flat tire and the jack wouldn’t work. He said those magic words, Let me help.

He proceeded to mess with the jack and after about 30 minutes, the jack began to work. In just a few minutes, the car was up in the air and he was taking the flat tire off and put on the spare. I heard barking and saw a dog in his car, barking away – talking barking, not fussing barking. I went back to talk to the dog and it wagged its tail and smiled. It was a senior animal with white around its muzzle. I noticed there were boxes in the car and from the looks of it, the man was living with the dog in the car. I went back to my car and offered him money for helping me. The man smiled and said, “No ma’am. Just doing what my folks taught me long ago – I was just helping out a stranger.” I had been to the store and on an impulse, I bought a box of dog treats! I asked if he would take treats for his dog. He agreed to that – he would take nothing for himself but he would take something for his dog. I took the box and fed a few to the dog who gobbled them up greedily. I reached into my purse and laid a $20 bill on the dash for him to find when he returned. I told him thank you and blessed his journey. I waited until he drove off and got into my car. I cried. That man with no home refusing money but willing to help and to take something for his dog. I was humbled.

So – what I would like you all to do, in haibun format – tight paragraphs with a haiku at the end, in 150 words or less, to write a haibun about actual kindness that was done for you or that you did for someone. Go ahead, toot your horn! Let’s flood the universe with instances of kindness. I am even going to forgive if the haiku does not have seasonal word in it.

To join in,
• Write your haibun and post it.
• Copy and paste the direct URL of the poem into Mr. Linky at the bottom of this post, along with your name.
• Post the link to dVerse on your blog and social media sites.
• Return to the pub and read other poets and comment on their work.
• Enjoy. And be sure to read and comment on the haibun.

And show some kindness this week.