I believe that kindness is one of the most important human characteristics. It
             is not that hard to say a simple 'thank you', and yet it can really change the outlook of
             someone else's day. My sister once told me, "It takes more muscles to frown than to
             smile." I have noticed that just being polite to the people around you can really make
             the atmosphere around you more positive. I can think of a lot of examples of when
             being polite has made things a little smoother, including one at the doctor's office,
             another at the commissary, and another one on the metro train in Paris.
             Yesterday, as I was heading to my appointment at the doctor's office, I entered
             an elevator to go to the third floor where my doctor's office is located. As I entered the
             elevator I pressed the button and waited for the door to close. I was running a few
             minutes late and I was a little concerned that I would not make my appointment in
             time. I noticed an old man enter the building and slowly make his way to the elevator.
             Instead of allowing the elevator door to close on the old man, I held the door open
             until the old man was able to board the elevator with me. Even though I was running
             late for my appointment I went a little out of my way to help this old man. When he
             entered the elevator he grinned and said, "thank you, young man." Even something as
             small as holding the door open for the old man had a positive impact on his day.
             Last week, I was standing in line at the commissary with my wife, when all of
             a sudden some lady in front of me starting complaining to the cashier. Apparently, she
             had not been able to find some of the products that she came looking for. In addition,
             she yelled at the cashier for the poor selection of products, the long line to check out;
             and even yelled at the cashier for the speed at which she was checking her ite
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