Free Hugs

We were at the bookstore today and Bug was playing on the ramp that goes from the lower level to the upper level.  She had done it a few times without incident but the last time it was different.  She stood halfway down, in the middle with her arms stretched across so no one could walk past. There was a little boy, who had to be no older than a year and a half, running full speed down the ramp directly at her.  I stood watching in horror and a split second before they collided, he fell into her arms and she wrapped hers around him, giving him the biggest hug ever.  It was like they had it planned the entire time.  My heart melted.  Right there in the middle of the store, I melted.  I could have exploded with pride.  Here I was, ready to say something to her about being nice and sharing and she did the kindest thing I could think of.  After he walked away, she looked at me beaming and said, "Give more hugs!" That was the only free hug she gave to a stranger today, but it reminded me of the youtube.com video of a man who stands on the street with a sign that says, free hugs (click here to watch this amazing video).  I've often wondered if that would work.  Have you ever gotten a free hug from a stranger?  Given one?  Have you ever been a witness to it?

A stranger giving free hugs.

Juan Mann is the man who started the free hugs campaign.  He has an amazing story of his trials and how he ended up on a street with a sign saying "Free Hugs." 

Here's part of his story.

I'd been living in London when my world turned upside down and I'd had to come home. By the time my plane landed back in Sydney, all I had left was a carry on bag full of clothes and a world of troubles. No one to welcome me back, no place to call home. I was a tourist in my hometown.

Standing there in the arrivals terminal, watching other passengers meeting their waiting friends and family, with open arms and smiling faces, hugging and laughing together, I wanted someone out there to be waiting for me. To be happy to see me. To smile at me. To hug me.

So I got some cardboard and a marker and made a sign. I found the busiest pedestrian intersection in the city and held that sign aloft, with the words "Free Hugs" on both sides.

And for 15 minutes, people just stared right through me. The first person who stopped, tapped me on the shoulder and told me how her dog had just died that morning. How that morning had been the one year anniversary of her only daughter dying in a car accident. How what she needed now, when she felt most alone in the world, was a hug. I got down on one knee, we put our arms around each other and when we parted, she was smiling.

Everyone has problems and for sure mine haven't compared. But to see someone who was once frowning, smile even for a moment, is worth it every time.

You can read more of his story and find more out about the cause at http://www.freehugscampaign.org/