Kindness still exists…

I have a good one to share.

One day a while back, I walked to my local grocery store to pick up food for the boy’s weekend. When I got to the grocery store, it was then that I had realized that I didn’t have a quarter to unlock a cart to shop with. I had a lot of groceries to pick up as my boys are big eaters, so using that small basket just wasn’t going to cut it.

In the corner of my eye, I spotted someone pandering for change. He was sitting on his own, with an empty coffee cup in front of him, and not looking at anyone or doing anything. I strolled up to where the man was sitting and politely asked if I could burrow a quarter so that I could get a cart, promising to return it when I was finished. Even though it had very little money in his cup, he did loan me a quarter, and trusted a total stranger to bring it back.

He didn’t have to do that, but the man went out of his way to do a solid for someone he had never met. He didn’t know a thing about me, but didn’t hesitate to reach into his cup and share his quarter. What the man didn’t know was that I have a chronic illness, so shopping without a cart would have been very uncomfortable, and even a little painful. It was a sincere and touching act of kindness that had saved me from what might have been a fair bit of grief and agony. I was genuinely moved by it.

Now here’s a confession: I didn’t give him his quarter back.

While I was checking out, the clerk at the till asked if I wanted any cash back from my purchase. Normally I don’t withdraw anything, but this time I said yes. I repaid his act of kindness with one of my own, replacing his quarter with $20. I still have that quarter, and I keep it in the small pocket of my jeans so I’ll always have a quarter for a cart. I also keep it as a reminder that kindness is still out there and in us all. That this world isn’t as hopeless as we all think it might be.

Have a good week everyone.

Peter