Thomas Raven and his three younger brothers dash across a field at their family farm in Cumbria to show me where they have planted a swathe of sunflowers.
They say the seedlings will soon be shooting up and, by the end of summer, will have blossomed into a tide of sunshine stretching as far as the eye can see.
“When they are strong enough we’ll be allowed to pick them,” explains eight year old Thomas. “And then we can give them away to anyone who needs a bit of cheering up.
“Because being kind to people is nice. It makes everyone feel better.”
The Mirror is today reporting on Acts of Kindness carried out by people all around the country. The Raven brothers and their mum Amy will be joining us live on the Mirror's Facebook page to talk about their touching acts of kindness.
And we'll be asking you to get in touch to share your own inspiring stories.
Join us at 10am at www.facebook.com/dailymirror/live
The touching plan is nothing unusual for Thomas, eight, Sebastian, seven, Jacob, six, and Henry, two.
Because throughout lockdown these little rays of sunshine have been brightening the lives of everyone around them with simple acts of kindness.
At the start of the pandemic the Raven lads set themselves the task of doing ten kind things for their neighbours - like baking cakes, picking up litter or taking their pet lambs to visit care home residents.
But when they saw the joy their small gestures gave, the four boys decided to carry on - to do 50 things, then 100 and beyond.
And they discovered that by planting tiny seeds of joy in other peoples’ hearts they had cultivated an extraordinary crop of kindness which is sustaining their whole community and spreading across borders.
First they inspired their classmates to get involved, prompting teachers to launch a Summer of Kindness programme across the entire school.
Then local businesses and organisations were sparked into action, giving gifts for the children to pass on.
Now the towns and villages around their 450 acre arable farm in Durdar, near Carlisle, Cumbria, are reaping a bumper harvest of happiness.
And folk as far away as Australia, America, Asia and Africa have been touched by the Raven lads’ efforts after their mum, Amy, 36, began a Facebook page for her Four Little Farm Boys.
“It’s all been completely overwhelming,” she said.
“At the start of the first lockdown I was homeschooling the boys and we were baking cakes, growing flowers and making art to liven up lessons.
“Then, one day, we decided to give some of their creations away to friends and neighbours, and it spiralled from there.
“They took their lambs and newly hatched-chicks to the care home to cheer up the elderly residents. They gave away plants in pots they’d painted themselves and took home-made biscuits, eggs, and cards to local people.
“One day they helped me cook 22 roast dinners to give away.
“And when a neighbouring farmer had an orphaned lamb he couldn’t care for the boys brought it here to raise themselves.”
Amy went on: “They can see from the smiles on people’s faces that they are doing something lovely. It teaches them the power of kindness and how it sparks a chain reaction.
“Our motto became ‘In a world where you can be anything, be kind.’ So we decided to paint it on the wall of our barn. As we have friends who are nurses we added the rainbow in appreciation of the NHS.
“Now every time the boys go in there with their lambs it reinforces the message.”
“The boys are full of energy and love making things and coming up with new ideas,” says dad Ross, 41.
“So once they’d set themselves a target they weren’t going to give up. But they are still going strong and now say they want to complete 1000 acts of kindness.”
“Kindness makes you feel happy,” says six year old Sebastian. “If you do something kind then the person you do it for might be kind to someone else.
“And it isn’t hard to make stuff - it’s fun.”
When local businesses heard what the boys were doing, they began supporting the kindness drive.
A florist gave them her excess stock to hand out on their rounds and a flour mill which Ross supplies sent them packs of cake and biscuit mix.
But when the boys returned to Hunter Hall primary school in Penrith, the scheme blossomed further.
Head Teacher Donna Vinsome said: “Hearing what the Raven boys had been doing was genuinely inspirational.
“So we asked them to share their ideas with us in assembly and the other children thought, ‘Well, if they can do it so can we'.
“The boys invited them to help plant 20kg of sunflower seeds at the farm. Then we set out on our Summer of Kindness.
“The children have made ‘Kindness Passports’ and set themselves 10 tasks to complete, with photos to record them.
“They can also do acts of kindness for themselves, which is vital in these difficult times, and that might be taking time out with their favourite reading book or bathing their favourite doll.
“But it has all just snowballed.”
She went on: “The lower school went on a community litter pick and they decided our caretaker, Mr Ellerton, 77, needed a bit of help with weeding the courtyard, which was lovely.
“There’s a new housing development nearby so they thought the builders might need cheering up and took them some Jelly Babies. The workmen were thrilled.
“They planted pots and our vicar took them to members of the church community, particularly the elderly.
“And we have had some lovely thank-you cards which have made a huge impact on the children - because it’s amazing what a small act of kindness can do.”
The youngsters decided to make treats for Mountain Rescue volunteers.
But a local cake shop owner donated her own bakes for them to pass on.
Mrs Vinsome went on: “It just shows how kindness breeds more kindness when people pay it forward.
“The Upper School children were each given £10 and told to grow that money for a local charity. Some made and sold ice cream, others are doing chores and some did a sponsored walk wearing animal onesies to help a rescue charity.
“Year 2 have been reading to patients in our local hospital over the internet, using Teams.
“And even the pre-schoolers have got involved, painting ‘kindness pebbles’ which they leave in their villages so that people can find them and pass them on to someone else.
“What the children have learned is that it doesn't matter how small a little act of kindness is, it can have a huge effect on people.
“It is not about materialistic things, a smile, a card, a colourful plant pot can bring so much joy.
“We had letters from some elderly ladies telling us they had been so lonely during lockdown but the cards and gifts really lifted their spirits.
“They were incredibly touched that these young children had thought of them.
“And we realise this is something we can, and must continue long after our Summer of Kindness.”
After a lovely afternoon with the Ravens it is time for me to head home.
Thomas hands me a bag containing something for the journey, and as I head down the lane, past the fields I take a peek inside.
It’s a tub full of delicious homemade desert, with hand-written note attached.
“Thank you so much for visiting. Hope you enjoy this pudding. #pass it on xxxx”
The four little farm boys may have to wait until September to harvest and share their sunflowers.
But the kindness they have sewn is already being gathered in - as far as the eye can see.
