We are in the midst of unprecedented times. A viral pandemic that has taken the lives of a million people. A contentious election year in the United States. A racial pandemic. Protests peppered with violence. So many of us are seeing so much bad in the world right now it can be difficult to see the good.

But, there is good, if only you take the time to look around you. In the midst of all the suffering stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic, the racial pandemic and the worries about the upcoming election in the United States, I still see beauty in the world and in its people. That beauty stems from those of us choosing to practice kindness and compassion.

Practicing kindness and compassion in times of chaos is a choice. One can choose to look upon the world and its people as though both are broken, or one can choose to look upon the world and its people as though both are improving. I choose the latter. I choose to believe that most people are doing their best to make the world a better place not just for them but for everyone.

If we choose to offer people compassion for doing the best they can with what they have, the easier it becomes to treat people with kindness. And that kindness costs you nothing. We can have different social or political beliefs and still treat each other with kindness. Just because someone is of a different political ilk does not mean he or she is a bad person. We can still treat that person with kindness and respect.

Treating those with whom we may disagree with kindness and respect says that we can disagree without being disagreeable. The cost of treating people with disdain is more than treating people with kindness. Treating people with kindness forces us to remember that people are doing the best they can. I have to believe that most people are doing the best they can with what they have. And that costs me nothing. Kindness costs me nothing.