Welcome to Kindness Inc

The Bakersfield Californian
Sept. 22, 1997

Bakersfield's Chuck Wall gained a good deal of attention several years ago when he stirred up nationwide interest in encouraging people to commit " random acts of kindness."

Stephanie Laland has taken that lead a step further, writing "Peaceful Kingdom: Random Acts of Kindness by Animals." The 200-page book ($11.95, Conari Press) "is a collection of true stories about animals who have displayed the sort of love and humanity we humans aspire to achieve," Laland writes.

Here's one chapter:

"In 1975, a woman was shipwrecked in the waters off the coast of Manila. Utterly alone and far from land, she began to pray.

"Then she saw a giant turtle swim toward her. Wildly, she clutched its shell and the turtle began to swim away with her. For two days, the turtle swam and towed her toward land, refusing to dive - which sea turtles do to hunt for food. The turtle gave up eating in its commitment to save the stranded woman's life.

"When she was finally picked up by a ship, the crew thought she had been clinging to an empty oil drum - until the 'drum' swam in circles and, seeing that she was all right, disappeared beneath the waves."

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