I was reminded today of a simple fact which is often overlooked or at the very least deemed politically incorrect and therefore disdained by "polite society." We've constructed a culture in the United States (and likely in other countries as well) where kindness is equated with niceness and even gentleness. Now, as with everything I post – this topic and this thought is not to be blindly followed or made as a blanket statement across every interaction and every situation. You must exercise conscious thought and discretion. I rely on your ability to think for yourself and to apply common sense to this statement. (Of course there are times when your kind attitude should be portrayed as nice and you should exhibit a gentle nature.)

But kindness is more than merely being nice. Kindness means demonstrating care for another person. Kindness involves exhibiting concern and consideration for a fellow human being. When you stop and consider this aspect of kindness I think it's important to recognize this kindness sometimes means sharing hard truths. When you disagree with something or when you are able to identify a fault or a problem in a situation (merely due to your outside observation) the kind thing to do is to address things. By addressing things you are demonstrating that you care about the other person. You are engaging in a hard conversation, handled delicately, because you want the best for someone else. Kindness is bold. I think this is the idea I'd like to see stuck in your mind. Rather than thinking of kindness as meek, quiet, deference alone I would urge you to equate kindness with boldness. Boldly speaking up in love to help someone you care about. That is true kindness.