Yesterday as I was walking across campus I passed a small group of students dressed in red t-shirts with permanent black marker emblazoned across the front: FREE HUGS =)
Perhaps they were taking a page out of the book of the Purdue University Compliment Guys, or perhaps they were just trying to spread some cheer in the days leading up to Valentine’s Day. As I walked past them, one young man came bounding across the sidewalk with his arms opened wide.
“Hi, there. How are you?” He asked.
“Fine,” I said. And then, as he continued to stand in front of me, “Are you going to give me a hug?”
“May I?”
“Sure.”
So he gave me a quick hug and then skipped back to his compatriots.
“Have a good day,” I called.
I love college students. You never know what crazy, whimsical, or insightful thing they will come up with next. Like giving away free hugs.
Have you hugged a stranger today?
And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted… (Ephesians 4:32)
The Mustard Patch 
How did I miss this post? God bless Purdue students. They are awesome. Look at how happy the people’s faces are in those photos–those “Stranger-Friends” as my favorite young person calls them. So, how did you feel after being hugged by a Stranger-Friend?