What I want is so simple I almost can't say it: elementary kindness.

The speaker frames “elementary kindness” as a desire so basic it feels almost unsayable—suggesting that what is most necessary in human life is also what is most routinely neglected. The phrase “so simple” underscores that kindness is not an abstract virtue requiring special training, but a foundational practice available to anyone. By calling it “elementary,” the quote implies a moral baseline: a minimum standard of care, respect, and gentleness that should govern everyday interactions. Its power lies in the contrast between the modesty of the request and the magnitude of its social implications—hinting that many forms of suffering and conflict persist not from complexity, but from the absence of this simplest human duty.