What IS Guerrilla Goodness you ask?

Guerrilla Goodness is intentional, anonymous acts of kindness performed in playful, creative ways for strangers, friends, and family.

It is the power of kindness and joy coming alive for all involved, both the giver and recipient. It’s discovering something about yourself and the world that changes everything, it is about believing and standing in kindness.

Guerrilla goodness is dropping flowers on strangers’ doorsteps, chalking up sidewalks outside of schools with good wishes on the first day of school, leaving quarters in all the gumball machines in town, slipping starbucks gift cards into books at the library for the next reader to find. 

I like to think it is where strangers and kindness meet to play! 

What does it look like?  

 The Story

 I am completely obsessed with the idea that random kindness can change the world.

It started small as my mom taught me to do someone’s dishes after a party, as I got older it was paying the toll for the car behind me, making a meal for a new mom or maybe leaving a $20 in the street musician’s guitar case…but it really all began with my sister and her magical way of anonymous giving.

During my poverty days of ramen noodles and no health insurance for my baby, she would hide bills all over my house and leave like nothing ever happened. Packages from L.L. Bean would arrive on my doorstep with a winter wardrobe but no note or bill. It always seemed to appear at just the right moment and when I grilled her, she would never confess.

Over time I realized that kindness came in all forms and I didn’t have to be rich to spread love and joy in the world. Tiny notes left in books at the library, a long conversation with an elderly man in the supermarket, a cold drink for a bum on the street, all of it energized my soul in a way nothing else did or could. There is no selfless good deed but it doesn’t really matter, the world needs it all… I have been on both ends of kindness and decided this was the work of my life. When I looked back, kindness had been calling me all along.

Guerrilla Goodness unfolded on my blog in 2007 after a kindness adventure I did to remember my friend Happyanne whose love and energy is ever present on this earth even though she has gone on. It was ridiculously fun, the sneaking, the rush, the power of kindness mixed with the power of play, all of it was highly addictive for my kindness call and heart. GG has evolved over time and hopefully will spread in ways I can’t even imagine.

The Missions:

(Listed by my favorites, not by date)

guerrilla goodness: the great ding dong ditch w/ mondo beyondo

guerrilla goodness: you are loveable

guerrilla goodness:  ding-dong ditchin’

guerrilla goodness: takin’ it to the sidewalks

guerilla goodness: takin’ it to the sidewalks part2

guerrilla goodness: cotton candy kindness

guerrilla goodness: got you in my back pocket

guerrilla goodness: chalk kindness+community=love

guerrilla goodness: candy kids

guerrilla goodness: sk8r boyz

guerrilla goodness: the great wall of motherly kindness

guerrilla goodness: kindness popsicles

guerrilla goodness: the mothers holiday survival kit

guerrilla goodness: in honor of…

guerrilla goodness: eggawesome!

guerrilla goodness: rubber kindness

guerrilla goodness: sidewalk chalk love (it’s back!)

guerrilla goodness: kid kindness, silly style

guerrilla goodness: coffee love

guerrilla goodness: gone disastrous

guerrilla goodness: happy birthday my friend

guerrilla goodness: you are magic

guerrilla goodness: laundry love

guerrilla goodness: going gourd

guerrilla goodness: we’re lucky to have you

guerrilla goodness: we’re lucky to have you part 1

guerrilla goodness:miami love in technicolor

guerrilla goodness: dinner with jimmy

guerrilla goodness: light in the dark

guerrilla goodness: the chocolate chain

guerrilla goodness: message to the world

guerrilla goodness: back to school treasures

guerrilla goodness: back to school love 11

guerrilla goodness: what you know about love

guerrilla goodness: when everything goes wrong

guerrilla goodness: library love

guerrilla goodness: moms go guerrilla

guerrilla goodness: kindness rain

kindness to me…

I’d love to hear about your own guerrilla adventures, and check out the GG Flickr pool to see what other Guerrilla Goodness Gorillas are doing.