18 Free (Or Almost Free) Things You Can Do To Spread Happiness

“Help me out,” I told my friend as we walked through the woods.  I did not need a hand over the roots sticking out from the muddy path. I did not need a sip of her water.  I needed mind help; I am still suffering from a little chemo brain.

The truth was, I needed help with my writing. I explained that I had been inspired by all the stuff in the news about happiness lately. I had been inspired by Felice’s article in BA50 last week about Spontaneous Happiness. And people had been so nice to me in these last months of treatment that I tried to make a list of things that are free-or almost free- that can make someone else feel happy.  But I couldn’t remember anything.

I informed her that despite my having thought about this all weekend, my list was only two items long.

“Do you have any ideas?” I asked.

And without missing a beat, she replied with a big smile, “You mean, like a blow job?”

And that’s why I love this friend. With three simple words, she made me happy.

However, that was not exactly what I had in mind.

What I had in mind was the kind of “nice” like when you wrote your kid an unexpected love note and stuffed it in their lunchbox.

Eventually, I came up with a few things, blow jobs not included:

1. Bring your positive energy to the table:  Go for a walk, surprise someone, make someone laugh. Your positive energy in any interaction is contagious.
2. Hold the door open.
3. Recommend a really awesome book. Here is one that was just recommended to me, and it is indeed, awesome:  What Was Mine, by Helen Klein Ross
4. Forward a good joke to a friend who you know would enjoy it. Here is one I recently received (feel especially free to forward this post with this awesome joke to make someone’s day):

Here’s a truly heartwarming story about the bond 
formed between a little 4-year-old girl & some construction 
workers that 
will make you believe that we all can make a difference when we 
give a child the gift of our time:

A young family moved into a 
house, next to a vacant lot. One day, a construction crew turned up to start building a house on the empty lot. The young family’s 4-year-old 
daughter 

naturally 
took an interest in all the activity 
going on next 

door 
and spent much of each day observing the workers. Eventually, the construction crew, all of them “gems-in-the-rough,” 
more or less adopted her as a kind of project mascot. They 
chatted with her, let her sit with them while they 
had 

coffee 
and lunch breaks, & gave her 20 little jobs to do here and there to make her feel important.

At the end of the first week, 
they even presented her with a pay envelope containing $10.

The little girl took 
this home to her mother who suggested 

that 
she take her $10 “pay” she’d received to the bank the 
next day to start a savings account. When 
the girl and her mom got to the bank, the teller was equally 
impressed & asked the little girl how she had 
come by her very own pay check at such a young age. The little girl proudly 
replied, “I worked last week with a real 
construction crew building
 the new house next door to us.”

“Oh my goodness gracious,” said the teller, “and will you be working 
on the house again this week, too?”

The little girl replied, “I will, if those assholes at Home Depot ever deliver the fuckin’ drywall.”

5. Let someone know how much you enjoyed the joke they sent you.  Even better…include it in your blog post with a “Thank you, Rick, for the awesome joke!”
6. Send someone a funny card.  Or any hand written note sent by snail mail.  Birthday not required.
7. Let someone step ahead of you in line.  Even when they have more groceries than you do.
8. Share a really awesome recipe.  Even better…make the dish, and bring it over with the recipe!
9. Buy a friend, or even a stranger, a cup of coffee.
10. Share a really funny video or an article you read that might mean something.  Here’s a good one that a friend sent me recently…and it made me smile:

11. Give a complete stranger a compliment.
12. Share your umbrella.
13. Leave a nice note for someone on their car if you recognize the car in a parking lot or on the street.
14. Let someone into your lane while you are driving.  I admit, I’ve actually never done this…and I’m not sure I ever will.
15. Get out of the Fast Pass lane (if there is no back up, of course) and pay the toll for the car behind you.
16. Bring flowers or vegetables from your garden to a neighbor.
17. Share a walk.
18. Say thank you for a job well done.

Sharing is caring!