You’re walking into Woodruff with a heavy backpack and your hands full. There’s someone in front of you and you feel relieved that you won’t need to juggle things around to open the door. But when you get to the door, it closes on you, hard.
Ouch!
Then you’re sitting in class and the person in front of you sneezes. You bless them in a kind voice and wait for a response.
Nothing.
Class ends and you shove textbooks into your bag. Carrying your notebooks, you rush out the door, but as you’re leaving, you collide with another student and your notes scatter everywhere. Bending down to clean up, you expect to see the other person helping.
They’re already in their seat.
Now feeling frustrated with rudeness, you walk to your next class with a quicker than usual pace. You’re next class is in Jeffords and you’re already running late, so you book it.
You notice another student in front of you going the same direction. You expect them to not hold the door open for you. You prepare your arms for the short struggle they will soon have.
As you finish juggling around, you look up and notice the person in front of you is now waiting for you with the door wide open.
In shock, you rush pass this person saying many “thank you’s.” Once in class, you feel a small smile returning to your face.
Unfortunately, manners are something that is fading. Do you remember a couple of years ago when texting at the dinner table got you a slap on the wrist?  

According to library.thinkquest.org, manners have become a lot more relaxed compared to how they were before the 1960’s. Manners almost seem like common sense. If someone sneezes, you bless them and expect a thank you in return.  

It’s not just these kind acts that are dying down, but the way some people talk. When did cursing in front of your parents become okay?

According to schools.com, 48 percent of adults over the age of 55 and 74 percent of young adults between the ages 18 and 34 swear in public.
Maybe it’s the way some of us were raised or maybe it’s because some public figures act so poorly and get paid for it.
But don’t just expect the worst from people. Some go out of their way to do something as little as holding the door open for a stranger.
Every year, there’s a week dedicated to random acts of kindness. There’s even a website where anyone can find random kind acts that are as simple as telling someone they’re awesome.
At Seton Hall, Hillary Sadlon performed 22 random acts of kindness for her 22 birthday in September. Instead of making the day about herself, she went out and made others smile.
So why is it difficult to hold the door open for a stranger, or just say ‘thank you’ after you’re blessed? One small act can lead to many others. It’s like a bug you want to catch because kindness is contagious.