Celebrating Kindness during Mental Health Awareness Week

There is always a specific theme and this year's is kindness.  The Mental Health Foundation explains why kindness has been chosen this year during these difficult and uncertain times...

'We have chosen kindness because of its singular ability to unlock our shared humanity. Kindness strengthens relationships, develops community and deepens solidarity. It is a cornerstone of our individual and collective mental health. Wisdom from every culture across history recognises that kindness is something that all human beings need to experience and practise to be fully alive.

One thing that we have seen all over the world is that kindness is prevailing in uncertain times.   We have learnt that amid the fear, there is also community, support and hope. The added benefit of helping others is that it is good for our own mental health and wellbeing. It can help reduce stress and improve your emotional wellbeing'.

Within our vineyard community of volunteers we have seen continuous acts of kindness and are very proud of what a kind, supportive environment has been created at the vineyard. We have also seen during these difficult times how this  kindness and sense of community  goes beyond the group physically being together at the vineyard. There have been many acts of kindness towards each other despite our physical distance. We are so grateful for this. 

There's a nice Kindness Matters Guide that the Mental Health Foundation has produced, explaining more about the theme of kindness

https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/campaigns/mental-health-awareness-week/kindness-matters-guide

for a few resources for coping during COVID 19 click here