Kindness Challenge Day 1: Give a Hug to Everyone You See!

Thursday, November 1, 2012

-"A silent hug means a thousand words to an unhappy heart." unknown author
- "Hugging closes the door to hate." Tony Davis

Day 1 of Kindness Challenge, the task is to hug, hug and hug!! Go, go, go! Hug your mom, hug your dad, hug your siblings, hug your neighbors, hug your friends, heck - hug your dog/cat! Now let me clarify. If you're the shy type - like me - and at the current moment are not comfortable to hugging others or have some form of belief against hugging then you can always just hug 3 people. There are 2 levels on this task.

Level 1: Hug 3 people

Level 2: Hug everybody you see

For this post I'll just share my experience on Day 1 and if you wish to read a detailed explanation on the day's task, go directly to Celestine Chua's post here at: Personal Excellence.co and leave comments directly at the Kindness Challenge and share with other participants as well! If you haven't signed up for the challenge - What are you waiting for? Go and sign up NOW! 730 770 780 790 800 810 participants and counting!


Registrations will close soon so NOW'S your only chance! Go, go, go!! Invite your friends and family members to join! Prepare for Thanksgiving and the New Year, be a part of this movement and be a kinder person today!! :)

Update: Registrations for the 14-Day Kindness Challenge at PE have closed but you are still free to do the challenge at your own pace, any time. You can always share your results in the comments section in Basked in Sunshine. Thank you so much for reading my experience. I hope it will serve as an inspiration for you guys/gals in the near future. Let's make the world a kinder place - together. :)

Who did I hug today and how did I feel when hugging them?

Me and the sweater I used for school! :)

I hugged 6 people and 2 dogs:

1) My mom - I felt like I was thanking her for all she does for me and my siblings.

2-3) My pregnant sister - I felt happy & nurturing towards her and the baby.

4) My little brother - I felt like a nurturing and loving big sister.

5) My dog 'Papi' - Happy, loving and playful.

6) My dog 'Michi' - Happy, loving and playful.

7) Friend at school - I felt comfortable and like hugging a teddy bear.

8) Friend at school - I felt like if I was leaving differences and problems aside and moving on.

To be honest, when I first heard of the first task I was bit shocked since I'm not a "hug person" - but even so - I found it very interesting. I used to be a person who did not like hugging due to a personal false belief that hugging was considered rude and something only people that are dating should do. I'm a person who as a child was raised in an environment in which men were portrayed as violent, sneaky or even liars (While it's not necessarily like that since I've long learned that there are tons of men in the world that are nice and loving). I lacked accurate belief on what romantic love was.

Nowadays, I don't consider hugging as something strictly reserved for couples in romantic relationships and am at peace with viewing it as an act that close friends do but I'm still long from being comfortable hugging strangers out of my own will - unless I'm asked to. -

What I've learned from Day 1:

Hugging isn't something to be afraid of. Hugs are the start of love,the start of friendship, the start of companionship, the spark of light that has permitted innumerable people to move on from a past grievance or wrong. I've been one of this people that has experienced her life change with a simple hug, and even though I expressed my slight feelings against hugging strangers (Due to my childhood beliefs), I would never exchange the hugs I've received in life for anything. A hug isn't just a hug - it can be but the start of many beautiful things in life. <3 :)

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Join me in the 14-Day Kindness Challenge! [Sign Ups Closed]

"No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted."  - Aesop

Hi guys!! I know Basked in Sunshine is still a new blog but I'd really love to share this wonderful challenge from experienced blogger Celestine Chua. It's a challenge in which you all are assigned different act of kindness for 14 days straight (Thursday, November 1 - Wednesday, November 14). With Thanksgiving and New Year already at our sleeves it's no wonder this challenge is such a blast with over 730 770 780 790 800 810 participants and counting!! For the following 14 days I'll be blogging about my personal participation in the challenge and sharing it with you!! The Sign-Up's will close in like 24 hours so this is your only opportunity! Join NOW at the following link: http://personalexcellence.co/blog/kindness-challenge/

Note: I'm really sorry I posted this late. I had been super indecisive whether to share the challenge with you guys since Basked in Sunshine is still a new blog but in the end I decided I'd really love to for 2 reasons:

#1. Celestine is kind enough to share a link of Basked in Sunshine on her blog Personal Excellence.co and...

#2. I'd simply love to reach even more people to make the world a kinder place!! :)

So what you waiting for? Sign up HERE and start being a kinder person today!! And don't just leave it at that, invite your friends and family to join you in this 14 days of kindness together. <3

Update: Registrations for the 14-Day Kindness Challenge at PE have closed but you are still free to do the challenge at your own pace, any time. You can always share your results in the comments section in Basked in Sunshine. Thank you so much for reading my experience. I hope it will serve as an inspiration for you guys/gals in the near future. Let's make the world a kinder place - together. :)

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Refreshing your Life

" The most terrifying thing is to accept oneself completely."

Hello there! Welcome to Basked in Sunshine! My wish for this blog is to plant a grain of salt in your lives and reach audiences, who might feel lonely or unaccepted by society, appreciate who they truly are and live life to the fullest as themselves. The concept of "be you" may sound a bit silly for a blog topic but I believe that everything and anything we achieve in life revolves around this tiny - *ahem* - big fragment of our personality.

I'm gonna be very honest, I don't have any professional diploma or background that will give you proof of any talent I may have. I am simply a 17 year old girl with a strong desire to grant love and hope in many people's hearts. I currently study culinary arts in a vocational highschool, nothing more, nothing less

Carrying on, I'll be blogging about ways in which you can grow into a better person and guide you towards your dreams in a kind tone that encourages being you at all times. It's very possible that most, if not all, of my blog posts will include a reference quote - let it be at the beginning or at the end - following a positive message.

I'd also love to share with you why is it that I chose Basked in Sunshine as the name for this blog. Basically, visualize the following: You wake up in the early morning. You listen to the roosters Coke-doodle-dos and head to brush your teeth and stare at your sleepy reflection in the mirror. You smile and say "Today is a new morning, a new opportunity to give it my all, no matter what might have happened to me in the past, today, I will enjoy and work towards my dreams to the fullest!" You get out of that bathroom, bask yourself in the rising sun and do all sorts of positive things you love!

And that's about it. The morning hours is commonly associated as an hour of peace, an hour of silence, an hour to simply sit on your table, eat that yummy breakfast, and watch the sun rise for a bright new day. Every day is a gift and an opportunity to start anew and in Basked in Sunshine I am offering you the utensils to start  for a new beginning. :)

Feel free to comment/offer feedback below. It can vary from an opinion, disagreement, etc. Please keep the vocabulary clean. Any post that is considered spam, trolling, cyber bullying, etc. will be deleted. Thank you for your time and patience! *Hugs*

Yours truly, Jica Gonz :)

(Note: My wish is to build a friendly environment for us to express ourselves and get along with each other, not an environment of unnecessary bullying or cyber-fights. Thank you.)

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