A slogan at Bonnaroo is “radiate positivity,” and most people tend to follow this guideline at the four-day festival. However, Bonnaroo has come and gone, but the slogan should be continued throughout the other 361 days of the year.

While at the festival, high-five Friday can allow one to receive hundreds of high-fives depending on how ambitious the individual’s attempts are to slap palms. Hugs, dancing and laughter create a unique closeness. If one walks through the campgrounds, meeting and talking with fellow campers can take up a whole day. 

Bonnaroo’s feeling of community and togetherness is a connection for most. It’s the same connection at a majority of concerts and it's one of the many reasons I love music so much.

As the Bonnaroo highs turn into lows, known by festival-goers as the “Bonnablues” when returning to the “real” world, many people who were full of love and radiating the utmost positivity on the farm fall back into the worries, self-concern and separation day-to-day life brings.  

The idea is to bring that same spirit and positivity back into one’s everyday life after leaving. Positivity, encouraging words, and kindness are so important and make bigger impacts than most realize.

Life isn’t always simple, and everyone feels down at times. It’s not as easy to be inspired to spread the love when removed from a location which encourages that feeling. We often feel isolated from others we don’t know.

Attitude is everything. If one wakes up and expects an awful day, an awful day is typically the result, but thinking positively and hopefully will typically bring about a much better day. A positive mindset goes a long way, especially when the positivity is spread to others. It takes very little time and energy to speak or do something kind. 

I’m by no means perfect and will get into a funk or lose focus on others, but I attempt to bring a positive light the majority of the time. The energy one projects truly makes a difference in the lives of others. 

We’re led to believe we’re just one small, miniscule person in relation to the overall world, and what we do doesn’t really matter in the grand scheme of things. This assumption is wrong. Every positive and kind action expressed to another person, even flashing a smile to a stranger, lifts someone’s spirits. I like to believe this spreads throughout the day as a type of pay-it-forward.

You never know what one kind act means to another person or how much it can affect them. This is the same with negativity, of course, but we have the ability to decide what type of energy we want to bring to those around us and ourselves. 

When you think of how kindness can cause a ripple-effect, the feeling of having the ability to make a change in this world becomes more hopeful. Take one day to focus on being kind to others, and watch the positivity radiate to yourself and those around you. 

Standard reporter Atlanta Northcutt can be reached at 473-2191.