The Conversation
A Visit From The 'Flower Ninja' Will Leave You Smiling
A ninja is on the loose in a small, rural town northern California. While she's not dressed in black, she does wear a mask. And, instead of a sword, her weapon of choice is kindness.
Six-year-old Mieka McClain has earned the nickname 'Flower Ninja' after she and her family started secretly leaving bouquets of flowers on their neighbors' doorsteps to spread some cheer during the pandemic.
Mieka lives with her family in Winters,CA. They decided to start giving away flowers to give back to a community that helped them get through a tough time.
Mieka's mother Michelle was diagnosed with breast cancer when she was pregnant with Mieka's younger brother. Currently, Michelle is in remission, but the mother-of-five will never forget the support she received when she needed it most.
"We would be home and random acts of kindness would come to our door," said Mike, Michelle's husband and Mieka's dad. He told CNN. "We'd get flowers, people would drop off food, people were doing more than anyone could imagine to help us out while we were struggling with what life was giving us."
Mieka works on "Flower Ninja things" while her younger brother watches from inside the house...
The McClains started driving around and anonymously dropping off flowers to people to return the kindness – something they feel is especially important now, when people are stuck indoors all day due to the coronavirus crisis.
"Everybody needs a little love right now," Mike said. "We got all the attention and love when we needed it so we figured we'll spread some of the love we got."
Meika got the nickname "Flower Ninja" for being able to quietly approach homes and leave bouquets quickly, without being detected.
The stealthy do-gooder does leave notes with her gifts asking people to post a photo of themselves with their flowers to the Flower Ninja Facebook page.
"It makes me happy to see other people happy and smile," Mieka said about her special deliveries. "I like doing it 'cause everyone is inside and can't go anywhere, and it is super fun."
The McClains have partnered with a small local flower shop called Roxie's Flower Truck to get the flowers for the bouquets. The shop was only open for about eight months when the pandemic hit and the owner was forced to close.
Thanks to the McClains' support, Roxie's owner Kristen Karlen has been able to keep producing bouquets, which also helps the small flower farms where she purchases her flowers. The family has already purchased over 50 bouquets since they started their project just a few weeks ago.
"They're doing more than just helping the receiver of the gifts," Karlen said. "It's helping my flower business, the flower farmers in our area where I get the flowers, and all those people witnessing their acts of kindness."
Not only are the McClains helping small businesses to stay afloat, they're also inspiring others to do similar things to spread joy in their communities.
One mom who received flowers from the Ninja said that after, her 9-year-old daughter wanted to start her own project and began drawing pictures for neighbors to make them smile. "She felt so much joy that she decided she wanted to do nice things for others as well," said Jillian Ferguson.
What an awesome way to brighten people's days during a dark time. It just goes to show that even the smallest acts can spark a giant wave of kindness!
