Thought these words were a nice way to start the day, and it reminded me to tell my good deed story. It's not MY good deed, but it was an inspirational one, borrowed from the good deed of my brother in law.
A few weeks ago we sat outside a little bakery/lunch shop....myself, sister, brother in law, and 4 kids between us. It was a bit of chaos per usual, kids climbing everywhere, food being eaten, not eaten, chairs being climbed on. You get the image.
As we sat there, this little old woman hobbled up to us. She was dressed very proper, like she had made a great intention of getting dressed. Belt, skirt, blouse, little shoes with a small chunky heel...smart square pillbox handbag. She reminded me of my grandmother, who was always horrified by how casually everyone dressed and would have dressed for lunch too. She looked very smart. She also looked about 95 years old...and she moved slow, stooped over, eyes a bit cloudy, face full of wrinkles and a lifetime of stories. She shuffled over, with as much grace as she could manage and a very regal air about her, bent down and whispered something in my brother in law's ear. He shook his head and said "yes, yes" and as she stood up she had tears she was wiping out of her eyes and my brother in law gave her a little half hug and said "my pleasure". I was watching all of this in the midst of the rest of the kids making a mess, and get squirrelly, and of course I was totally confused, and it wasn't until the woman left that I got the full story.
My brother in law had bought the woman lunch. For no reason other than she was standing behind him in line, and he explained that years ago he'd started this practice of occasionally buying some random stranger lunch, or coffee. He works in a hospital, so he often goes thru the lunch line and he can easily swipe his card to pay for someone behind him. He said he usually does it before they even get a chance to thank him, and it's just a feel good thing he likes to do to "make someone's day".
On this particular day he turned around and said to his woman, "I'm buying you lunch"...she asked why? and he answered, "just because." He went about his lunch with us, sitting outside and enjoying the sun, but out of the corner of his eye he could see the woman get her food, find a table inside, and eat alone.
She had come out to thank him, and clearly his gesture of kindness had brought her to tears. It quite possibly was the nicest thing anyone had done all week, or month...or maybe year for her. It would be too presumptuous to say what her circumstances were, but by the manner in which she thanked him, I would have to guess she was lonely, and starving for acts of kindness which, let's face it, can be few and far between in the world today.
Honestly, it was one of the best things I've witnessed in awhile, and it was such a great reminder that sometimes those little things that we do with kind intention can mean the world to someone. And if not the world, maybe it just makes their day, which is wonderful too. My brother in law is a pretty great guy, but no saint...which is to say, he's an ordinary guy doing something that is extraordinary because he does it--and regularly, and most people just don't. I'm going to try and all in line and do the same.
I did grill my brother in law on the logistics of it, and my secret fears that might stop me from doing it. Will they be insulted because I think they can't pay for lunch? Will they think I want something or am selling something? Do I ask them or just do it? Random practical questions that when I say out loud seem the silliest of reasons to hesitate to do something like this....yet, I can see i holding me back. My brother in law agreed that sometimes it wouldn't be received the way you wanted, it was still worth it for those moments when it was received SO,SO well. So that's what I"m going to remember...it's the intention behind what you do that matters. It doesn't have to work every time, but even if it worked 75% of the time in the way in which you intended, that's pretty fantastic.
Signed, ME {LV}
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