Definition Of Kindness

Merriam-Webster defines the word kindness as “the quality or state of being gentle and considerate”. I agree with this definition of kindness, however, my own definition of kindness is a bit different. I do not believe that anyone who portrays the quality or state of being gentle or considerate is portraying kindness, because someone can portray these qualities but have bad intentions. I believe that kindness is an act that comes from a place of genuine and good intentions and I believe that these intentions should come from the heart.
I grew up as the youngest of three sisters and one brother. I learned at a young age that if one of my siblings was being nice to me, they probably had ulterior motives. Luckily, my four year old nephew doesn’t

exhibit the same behavior. While my sister is working, I take on the responsibility of babysitting my nephew and I’ve noticed that he exemplifies what I believe kindness means. One example of this kindness was when I was taking care of him one day. My nephew had come home from school and was on the playing with his action figures on the floor when he suddenly turned to me and told me that he loved me so much and that I was his best friend. This shocked me, I wasn’t expecting him to tell me this. I asked him why he told me that and he responded with a big a smile and said that he just he just felt like being nice. I believe that my nephew speaks out of true kindness when he declares his love for me.