Have a sweet day!
Usually, when I am a having a bad day, all I need is a piece of candy or chocolate or ice cream, or anything sweet for my mood to shift from bad to good. According to Susan Bowerman, a registered dietician, this kind of cravings originated from long-established patterns or memories from our childhood when we are calmed down or rewarded with sweets.
Oblivious to stangers' feelings and circumstances, my groupmates and I wanted to do something sweet for our fellow Ateneans. We thought of giving out lollipops with positive messages and quotations attached to them inside the Ateneo. Through this small act, we aimed to increase the positive affect of our fellow Ateneans, especially now that we ourselves are physically, emotionally, and mentally distressed about the requirements for our courses.
Preparing the lollipops - cutting out the message strips and attaching them - was not really much of a hassle. If anything, it lightened up my mood for I did it with my friends. Albeit we had a hard time affixing the strips to the lollipops, finishing the task made us feel accomplished. Likewise, handing out the lollipops to our fellow Ateneans was fun. Seeing them smile, and seeing them eat the food we gave to them made our day.
Doing an act of kindness for others also does something for us. I remember one argument from the FRIENDS series. According to Joey, no act of kindness is not selfish; doing something good to and for others also brings us satisfaction and happiness. This activity of ours reminded me about this because while we were doing an act of kindness to others, we were also doing something good for ourselves - we are also rewarding ourselves the joy one gets from giving.