Yesterday a few fellow givers and I went to the Delmar Loop to give out free hugs. For me, this was the most enjoyable day of giving so far. We gave so many hugs that we lost count! The day was a great success, and here's why I think so:
* The Loop is an exciting, hip area. There's more diversity among it's patrons, and people are generally more open-minded.
* The weather was beautiful
* It's move-in weekend at WashU, so many students and parents were out exploring the city
We stood on the sidewalk holding our "Free Hugs" signs, and let people approach us. This worked well; I think we learned from our first day of giving that people may feel pressured or uncomfortable if we outwardly approach them. We kind of learned to gauge when to talk to people and when to just stand there.
Overall, we met some interesting people. GiverTree already mentioned some of the Greats (like "That price is great" guy), but here are some others:
* The first group of girls to get hugs really set the tone of the day. There were five of them, and one recognized the signs and asked if we were from Rolla (apparently the school has Free Hugs shirts for sale there, and two of girls owned their own!) Those first five hugs were pretty clutch
* A big group of kids passed us on several occasions, giving us hugs each time. They kind of became our unofficial recruits, shouting out to people on the street to give us hugs!
* We met a few students from Ladue; they were taking pictures for their photography class (shout out to Mr. Sachs!)
* A group of WashU freshman crossed the street to hug us and chat
* Even amongst the people who didn't hug us, we got many stares and smiles. We even exchanged some "air hugs" with people across the street or in cars who we couldn't physically hug
In addition to the people we hugged and met, we made so many interesting observations. The following are only some:
* The demographics of "huggers" varied greatly. We had people of all races/ethnicities, ages, and both genders hug us. At the same time, certain groups of people seemed friendlier and much more comfortable approaching us and getting hugs.
* It was easy to spot the starers, especially when they were in big groups across the street, or people stopped in their cars at a stoplight. We made it a point to wave to people when they stared. They would almost always get a huge grin and wave back.
* Contrary to our thoughts, many parents encouraged their young kids to give us hugs, rather than pull them away upon seeing their child approach a stranger.
Overall, I really enjoyed this day's giving! Seeing peoples' reactions, and how positively we affected others, was really reinforcing and put me in a great mood all day. In addition to spreading kindness and happiness, I think this was an interesting social experiment. I definitely encourage you readers to try it some time. If you're not comfortable hugging strangers, at least make an effort to hug the people you care about more often!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment