Acts of Kindness All Around

Doing something unexpected for someone else can often make the day of both individuals involved. Truly a nice benefit of sharing a little kindness.

A few weeks ago, I stopped at a nearby gas station to fill-up the tank. There happened to be a young couple at the station asking for $1 (from separate individuals) to help pay for some gasoline. And it was apparent that the jaded folks in this area were blowing them off.

Their car had Pennsylvania tags and here we were in northern Virginia. They realized that they had severely underestimated their gas reserves and knew that an empty tank was imminent so they pulled off I-95.

Now, you may first think....what a scam....NO MONEY for GAS?
Come on now....credit cards anybody?

Well, I happen to remember the first credit card I applied for and that was when I was a 24-year old doctoral student. This couple looked to be about 18-19 years old and were obviously becoming concerned that they might not be able to purchase a meager 3-4 gallons of gas to get them to his father's home in rural Pennsylvania.

Again, you may think....what were they doing hitting the road without any cash?

Sometimes people without much life experience simply don't plan for the unexpected. Years ago, I had a friend who was driving across country from Indiana to his family's home in San Marino, CA. Now this was a guy who came from money. The backyard of his family's home butted the Huntington Library and Botanical Gardens, a beautiful location. After stopping for a visit in Oklahoma City, he was going to hit the road again with $7 in his wallet.

$7 total to take him the rest of the way!!! What was he thinking?
Well, sometimes youth doesn't think and my parents gave him some money.

So at this gas station, I pulled out my wallet to contribute some cash.
Well, guess what? I didn't HAVE any cash!! Whoops.

So I offered to use my credit card to get them some gas. They in turn offered me the $5 they had collected so far.

That cinched the deal. I completely filled their gas tank and refused to accept the money. They were obviously grateful and relieved.

I wished them a safe remainder of their journey. And all three of us left that local gas station with smiles on our faces.

I firmly believe if your heart is responsive to those around you that there are times you may be at just the right place at precisely the right time to be able to help someone in need. That assistance doesn't need to be grand, nor monetary for that matter. Sometimes a kind word or a simple gesture can be just the very thing which one needs to get them through the day.

This young couple made my day!!!