The Power of Small Gestures

No. 85 - How the smallest actions can create the biggest ripples—in our homes, our communities, and the world around us.

Oct 10, 2025

The other night as I was lying in bed, I kept hearing loud thuds on the roof. The impact was so loud, I thought branches were falling or an animal was running around above our head.

The next morning, I walked outside expecting to see a mess in the yard, and was shocked to see a few tiny acorns scattered around instead. What had sounded so big the night before was really something small.

It struck me how often that’s true in life. What feels small in effort can grow into something much bigger in effect.

Motherhood reminds me of this every single day. It’s rarely the big, carefully orchestrated moments that define our influence. More often it’s the choices we make in the ordinary spaces of our lives. The way we speak to our children when we’re tired. The way we pause to listen when it would be easier to rush them along. The way we model kindness in how we interact with the people around us.

And it’s not only at home. In the wider world, it can feel overwhelming to believe our small efforts matter. With so much noise and so much need, what difference can one person really make? But maybe it starts in these tiny interactions. Choosing to put away our phone in the grocery line and look the cashier in the eye. Encouraging our kids to offer a genuine “please” and “thank you.” Checking in on a friend. Waving at a neighbor. Dropping off coffee for someone who’s had a long week.

These may feel like tiny drops of kindness, but together they create ripples. They remind others they are seen. They remind us that we have the power to shift the atmosphere around us. And when we practice them consistently, they add up to something much larger than we can measure.

It’s easy to underestimate the influence of the simplest actions, but they’re often the ones that shape the world around us. A kind word. A patient response. A moment of connection when it would have been easier to look away. These are the acorns that fall quietly into our days, yet they carry weight far beyond what we can see.

When we choose these everyday gestures, again and again, we’re planting something bigger—in our families, in our neighborhoods, in our communities. They may not feel dramatic, but over time they build the kind of culture we hope to leave behind.

What feels ordinary to us may be the very thing that creates lasting change.

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