Anonymous Do-Gooders Reveal How They're Secretly Making The World A Better Place

The world could use some brightening up these days, and even the smallest good deeds can make a difference. In Judaism, we call them mitzvot. See some trash? Pick it up. Make someone smile. Let someone merge in front of you. Let bugs live. We're all in this together.

486921 asked, How are you secretly making the world a better place?

Submissions have been edited for clarity, context, and profanity.

I decided to be kind. A great friend of mine is one of the kindest people I know. He isn't a pushover, but he is extremely kind and gentle with everyone. He can cut loose, have some drinks, joke around, and so on. But he is always himself, and always kind. There are a lot of things I want to change in my life, and I decided to be kind was my first step. I've had amazing results. My relationships are better, and I'm feeling mentally and emotionally healthier.

This change may not have a worldwide impact, but I've already seen my wife become kinder also. So, for now, my world is already a better place.

Every time I'm driving and someone turns on their signal to change lanes I make room and let them in. It actually hasn't increased my commute at all.

Pick up trash whenever I see some because if you start this, the one with you will too.

When I'm getting on the bus, if I see someone down the street running for the bus I move really slowly and fumble with my card so that they have a chance of making it. They usually do!

I make it my point to be nice to customer service workers, even if I'm calling or confronting them with a complaint.

Remember folks, 99.9% of the time, it's not the reps fault, they just have the terrible job of dealing with it. Yelling at them just ruins their day even more than it already is. However, being overly nice to them can brighten their day, and make them more willing to ensure your problem gets fixed.

EDIT: I should note that I'm not just referring to call center employees. It goes for cashiers, greeters, secretaries and anyone else whose job it is to interact with customers. They all could use a smile.

I used to donate platelets every other week. I did that for eight years.

Now, I sprinkle wildflower seeds on my walks with my dog. I try to pick the bee-friendly ones.

I like to hang out on /r/lastimages and find people's last photos of their loved ones who have passed. When they have wires/tubes/medical equipment, etc hanging off of them or are surrounded by scary medical equipment, I remove them in photoshop, correct lighting, color and whatnot to make their loved one more visible or make the setting more respectable as a memorial photo.

Sometimes its removing cups, needle bruises on a sick person's face, etc. Most of the time I need to message the folks directly bc my account is not old enough to post in comments. I super love it though. It makes my heart happy.

EDIT: Oops, I guess technically I'm not really doing it secretly. But only my bf knows I do it and I don't tell the photo owners beforehand.

My brother has cancer. It's terminal. He has 5 months to live. He doesn't want anyone to know. I'm the only person he's told. I throw BBQs every weekend and invite over everyone he knows. I listen to him and help him cope. He doesn't want anyone to know so I carry this burden alone. I'm grieving every day but no one knows. I suffer alone so he doesn't have to have the emotional burden of watching people grieve his death openly in front of him.

I always carry around a little 'survival pack' for other people, basically, things people and strangers ask me for but I never have on me. Items in the pack include:

A lighter (I don't even smoke myself, but it's probably the most common thing I get asked for), painkillers, chewing gum, plasters (you never know when someone will ask you for one!), Vaseline, cough drops, and some feminine hygiene products.

It's made things so much easier for myself and others. Whenever someone asks me at the bus stop "hey, do you have a light?" or a friend at work says "do you have any painkillers?", it makes me really happy and feels like I'm doing something extra for other people.

EDIT: yes, I'm British. By painkillers, I mean paracetamol/ibuprofen, and by plasters, I mean band-aids /bandages. Sorry for the confusion!

When the sun comes back out after a rainstorm, I move worms on the sidewalk back to the grass so at least they have a chance instead of just drying up and dying.

I visit a lot of elderly customers as a shopping delivery driver. I always make a point of taking the delivery inside for them and if they want, I will also put it away for them too. I also always ask if they need anything while I'm there (One lady needed me to open a jam jar, I've moved couches, helped with puzzles, stayed and had tea etc.)

If I notice that they're clearly alone, I make a point of asking if they have visitors as I would happily go visit them in my spare time.

One guy asked me if I could go back and mow his lawn.

I make artwork to sell professionally. Mostly small things. Some actual miniatures.

So sometimes I have pieces that don't quite meet my standards for sale but are still cool. Slightly imperfect blank books, little dolls, whatever.

I leave them in random places like the coffee shop or the library with a note attached that says something along the lines of "If you found this, it's for you. Have an awesome day."

I like to imagine that they brighten someone's day.

I'm teaching my son to leave everything better than we find it. If there are shopping carts left around the parking lot, we take them to the front of the store where they belong while we walk in. If we are out hiking with the dog and see someone left their dog poop bag by the side of the trail, we bring it with us if we're carrying our dog's anyway. We pick up trash if we're walking into a store and see it in the parking lot. Little things that I hope make the world better.

I hate littering and my friends and bf used to make fun of me because I will carry my rubbish until I get to a bin but over time a lot of them have said to me that they now feel too guilty to throw their rubbish on the ground, my boyfriend admitted he spat out his chewing gum and picked it up again thinking about my rants! I'm going to save the planet one recovering litterer(?) at a time.

I buy bags of California Poppy seeds and I toss them into bare patches of the ground when I take my dogs for walks. They are tough plants that can grow just about anywhere and they're beautiful. I've sown them in at least 8 neighborhoods and once they're established they'll come back year after year.

I pick up screws and nails (and other sharp objects) from drivable surfaces and dispose of them daily.

Once I started looking, I was surprised to discover how many I find.

Try to break up Phantom Traffic Jams.

I take my medication.

I've started carrying a metal straw around with me in my purse and use it instead of a plastic one when I buy drinks. That video of the sea turtle crying and screaming while they tried to pull a straw from its nose really haunts me.

It may not seem like much, but I've been teaching my 4-year-old son to not kill bugs when he sees them just chilling. I don't know why, but it really creeps me out to see the delight some kids get out of just stomping the some crickets in a corner like they're sociopaths in training. My son knows of a few bugs that are totally harmless around here that he'll make a point to carefully capture and relocate so they don't get obliterated by other kids.