Many of you have seen the movie with the title of this column.

It’s the story of a social studies teacher who gives an assignment to his junior high school class to think of an idea to change the world for the better and then put it into action.

When one young student creates a plan for “paying forward” favors, he not only affects the life of his struggling single mother, but he sets in motion an unprecedented wave of human kindness which, unbeknown to him, has blossomed into a profound national phenomenon.

I was inspired further of this idea by a good friend who lives in Florida. He pays it forward several times a week. The other day he struck up a conversation with a stranger while waiting in line in Dunkin’ Donuts and then paid for the person’s coffee.

For me, I’m paying it forward with small gestures or inexpensive favors I do for people I don’t know or I randomly meet.

I attended many high school football games this season, some as a sports writer for this newspaper and others as just a fan of the games. A few weeks ago I offered an elderly gentleman a ticket I had purchased for the purpose of paying it forward. He was struggling to take money from his wallet at the ticket booth when I had approached him.

“Here, take this ticket and enjoy the game,” I said.

At first he didn’t understand that my offering was an act of kindness, but then when he figured out I wanted nothing in return, he thanked me. With the look on his face, you would have thought I handed him a hundred-dollar bill.

A second time, I stopped two senior citizens and gave them two “pay it forward” tickets that I had bought. One gentleman tried twice to pay me for his ticket. Then the two men thanked me over and over and each gave me a strong handshake.

On Veterans Day, I asked the woman selling tickets from the booth to the Jim Thorpe-Lehighton football game if she would do me a favor and give two tickets I paid for to men or women who wore caps or jackets with insignia for any branch of the armed services.

The ironic result about performing an act of kindness to someone is the initial reaction is often one of a lack of trust. Sadly, when you are kind to a stranger, he or she thinks you want something in return or you’re setting him up for doing harm in some way.

These reactions tell me a lot about the state of society. I walked by someone coming out of a grocery store and said good morning to a stranger who looked right at me. She lowered her eyes and said nothing in return.

I’ve held a door open for a person behind me, allowing her to go inside before me and did not receive a thank you in return. I have thought that their minds are preoccupied and I can definitely relate to that.

The human condition is suffering from emotional disturbance, loneliness and alienation. We see far too many breaking points that lead to suicides and mass shootings. People are disconnected. Hardly anyone one pays attention. Few care. Those of us who are fortunate to have love in our lives are fearful of the outside world and very protective.

Back in the day, a parent would say to her little child, “Say hello to the nice man.” Now she says, “Stay next to me. Don’t talk to that man.”

We live in a society where some build walls around their little worlds of happiness. I read this anonymous quote the other day. “Ignore people who threaten your joy. Don’t invite any part of them into your space.”

Instead of worrying about who will try to steal our joy, why don’t we share our joy with those who have none?

Make someone you don’t know smile. Cheer up a sad child. Let another human being know he or she matters.

Donavan Nelson Butler, master sergeant in the United States Army said, “Life is a roller coaster of highs, lows, hard lefts, hard rights and even some loop-de-loops. But, know this. Participation is mandatory and your legacy is the accumulation of what you gave back, not what you took out.”

Butler echoed the words of the great Albert Einstein, who wrote, “A life lived for others is the only life worth living.”

Rich Strack can be reached at katehep11@gmail.com.