All around us there are people with needs, people who we can help with little effort and a lot of heart. But how often do we actually leap into action?

For one server at an IHOP, it's in his nature to help others through his compassion.

According to a CNN article, Joe Thomas, a 43-year-old server in Springfield, IL, treats all of his customers like family. He said, "I love the people. I just love my life, and I love the way I am."

He proved his loving heart recently, and his actions were caught in a picture taken by another patron, who was touched by his thoughtful actions.

A woman and her husband frequent the IHOP where Thomas works, coming in at least once a week, the article stated. Usually, the husband feeds his wife who is unable to feed herself, and then eats his food cold. She has Huntington's Disease which "is a fatal genetic disorder that causes the progressive breakdown of nerve cells in the brain."

Noticing this couple's plight, when Thomas brought them their food, he waved the husband off and began cutting up the wife's food and feeding it to her. Thomas stated in the article, "I didn't really offer. I just started doing it," Thomas said. "I told the gentleman to 'Sit down, eat your food. I got her.'"

Now it's their routine.

Those who know Thomas say this is nothing new for him. He's like this all the time.

Do you know people like Thomas? Can the same be said about you?

Kindness often inspires more kindness. Find ways to help others. Maybe it's holding a door for someone and giving a smile. Or maybe it's helping a neighbor with yard work or buying dinner for another family in a restaurant. It doesn't take much besides an open heart to lift others through your thoughtfulness. Thomas' behavior wasn't a grand gesture, but something simple and thoughtful.

Make compassion for others a normal part of your life rather than a rarity. The world needs more people willing to put others' needs ahead of their own. We need people who are better at spreading love than hate. And when you're on the receiving end of someone's goodness, pay it forward again and again.