The next time a small stone catches your eye, consider taking a closer look. You might have stumbled upon a kindness rock.

While Spartans tend to focus on the ever-changing painted billboard that is the Rock, a much more subtle campus tradition goes on largely unnoticed. Decorated pebbles, adorned with uplifting messages and whimsical designs, lie hidden along MSU’s paths, steps and stoops — just waiting to brighten someone’s day.

I found one on a crisp autumn morning last week at the entrance to Olds Hall. A smooth beach cobble caught my eye, and I bent down to examine it. The underside had been painted with the word “Empower.” I smiled in surprise.

These little tokens are akin to the Kindness Rocks Project, a national movement that aims to spread positivity through simple acts. The concept is straightforward: paint a rock with a kind message or image and leave it for someone else to find. It’s a small gesture intended to uplift spirits and foster a sense of community.

More than a few Spartans have been motivated over the years to bring this practice to campus.

“My children and I have decorated stones with messages like this and left them around campus and our own neighborhood since the pandemic lockdown in 2020,” said Karissa Chabot-Purchase, assistant director of MSU’s Career Services Network. “Going on walks was one of the few things we could do at the time. We still bring batches to campus on occasion for Spartans to discover.”

Her latest batch earmarked for MSU include a variety of decorations: drawings of peace signs, flowers, faces and affirmations including “You rock” and “Someone loves you.”

Another kindness rocker, Spartan mom Cyreeta Hall (known as Mamma Hall), posted an upbeat video of herself hiding kindness rocks all over campus on TikTok. Mamma Hall’s son, Jordan Hall, is a Spartan linebacker.

Of the rocks, one of her followers noted, “I have found a few in my area while on a walk/hike. They absolutely make my day!”

The trend has also been repeated by various campus organizations. As it turns out, the gilded gravel I found was most likely from a rock-painting event hosted by the Prevention, Outreach and Education Department during its “It’s on Us Week of Action” from Nov. 11-15. Attendees painted rocks with messages of support to survivors at MSU.

“In spring 2024, we wrote supportive notes to community members using services at MSU’s Center for Survivors,” said Jodie Goodman, prevention education manager. “The rock painting was a creative twist on that idea by one of our student co-chairs.

“The rocks were painted with messages like “We believe you,” “You are loved” and “Spartans Support Survivors” and were left anonymously around campus near the Student Services Building where the Center for Survivors is located,” she said. “We wanted survivors to feel seen and supported by the whole MSU community, including the physical campus itself.”

In a world where grand gestures often steal the spotlight, the kindness rocks scattered around campus serve as a gentle reminder that, sometimes, the smallest measures can bring the brightest smiles.