Rule 66 kindness

Watch or listen:
Vodcast | Podcast

desert road symbolizing rule 66 kindness and choosing compassionRule 66 kindness is not loud. It does not announce itself with signs or slogans. Most of the time, it looks like slowing down when everyone else is rushing past. It looks like noticing what is right in front of you and deciding not to look away. I believe that is the work I am called to do, not because it earns points or proves belief, but because it leaves people better than I found them.

I have learned that kindness rarely feels efficient. It often interrupts plans, schedules, and carefully constructed routines. We tend to imagine compassion as something reserved for special moments, but most of the opportunities arrive unannounced. They show up in parking lots, at diner counters, on sidewalks, and in conversations we almost avoid because we are tired or unsure what to say.

As a Christian, I am bound by faith to take that seriously. There is a moment in the Gospel of Matthew where people are fed, healed, and restored. What stands out to me is not the spectacle, but the attention. Someone noticed. Someone stayed. Someone chose to respond instead of passing by. That moment does not demand belief from the reader. It simply describes what happens when compassion is allowed to take the lead.

Rule 66 Kindness Is About Noticing

We live in a time when opinions travel faster than compassion. It is easier to argue than to assist. Easier to post than to pause. Rule 66 kindness asks something different. It asks us to notice who is struggling without first deciding whether they deserve help. Hunger does not wait for agreement. Loneliness does not require shared values. Pain does not pause until we feel prepared.

I have seen how small acts ripple outward. One meal becomes conversation. One conversation becomes dignity. One moment of dignity can change the direction of a day, sometimes even a life. None of that requires theology. It only requires attention and a willingness to act.

Kindness That Moves Instead of Performs

There is a difference between kindness that performs and kindness that moves. Performing kindness wants to be seen. Moving kindness just wants to help. Rule 66 kindness is the second kind. It does not ask for credit. It does not demand recognition. It understands that usefulness matters more than volume.

I think many people, especially those who feel disconnected from faith, have been hurt by loud versions of belief that lacked follow-through. I understand that. I have felt it too. That is why this work matters to me. Kindness that feeds, heals, and includes speaks louder than any argument ever could.

2026, The Year Kindness Takes the Wheel

I have been thinking about what it would look like if we treated kindness as something active, not optional. If 2026 became the year kindness took the wheel instead of riding in the passenger seat. That does not mean fixing everything. It means choosing to respond when something is within reach. It means letting compassion guide decisions that usually default to convenience.

Rule 66 kindness does not promise easy answers. It offers a better direction. Leave people better than you found them. Feed when you can. Stay when it would be simpler to leave. Help without asking whether someone agrees with you first.

✨ Roadside Reflection:

Kindness does not need permission or shared belief to get moving. It only needs someone willing to notice and slow down. Rule 66 kindness reminds us that leaving people better than we found them is always the right direction. In 2026, let kindness take the wheel, not because it is easy, but because it is necessary.


Return to Journal | Listen to the Podcast | Watch on YouTube | Visit Greater Good Science Center

Faith and Good Courage is a podcast and journal by Christopher Tuttle.