Yesterday at lunch, Knitting Daughter (aka Starbucks Barista) was telling us about a lady who comes through the drive-through line for her coffee and frequently pays for the person behind her, too. Now wouldn’t it be fun to drive up to the window and hear, “Yours is free today – the lady ahead of you took care of it.”? Since I frequent Starbucks quite a bit once in awhile, I decided that I’d do that on occasion, too. Not all the time. But maybe once a week. Which got me to thinking about other Random Acts of Kindness that I could be doing during this season of giving. And then I started thinking about how fun it would be if we all did that from now until the end of December! So we going to sponsor “Random Acts of Kindness Month” here at The Loopy Ewe. Each Monday, we’d love to have you leave a comment about a random act of kindness that you did during the past week. Some people like to do this anonymously (like me), but rest assured that the people you are being kind to probably have never heard of this blog, so you’re safe in sharing it with us. Not only will you enter yourself into a weekly drawing here, but you will inspire all of the rest of us with your ideas and kindness. (And really – inspiring others to random acts is, in itself, an act of kindness, right?) Since you’ve had no warning for today’s contest, I think it’d be great if you’d leave a comment about a RAK (Random Act of Kindness) that someone has done for you. That will give all of us some great new ideas. (Or if you do one today, enter it today.)
The prizes? Each week we’ll pull one name from the list (and if you do more than one act, leave more than one comment – you can be entered more than once) and we’re going to send you a fun Loopy Loot package worth at least $75. (Hey all of you book authors that are Loopy customers – and there are a lot of you! – if you’d like to donate an autographed copy of one of your books to put into one of these 6 drawings, we’d love that! Ditto to all of our Loopy indie dyers and Loopy indie artisans. I’m not going to email you and solicit products – we are happy to stuff the packages right from inventory here, too, but if you want to contribute, it could be your RAK for the week!) We will ship all winners at the same time – on January 2nd. That way we can make sure that all 6 packages are of equal value. We’ll do drawings for the next six Monday posts (including today and ending 12/31. We’ll draw on Tuesdays, so that all of the Monday comments will be included.)
I did go through the drive through today and I did pay for the person behind me. I was hoping that someone who really needed a free coffee would pull up behind me. Instead, a guy in a fancy sports car pulled up. What to do? Because of course I was making judgements about him and his fancy car and the fact that he could well afford his own coffee I wondered if he’d appreciate it? Then I stopped myself. I decided he must need a kindness today, so I went ahead and paid for him and then sped off as fast as I could so I would stay anonymous! And, unbelievably, on the back of my Starbucks cup today, I noticed that it says: “Pass the Cheer. A good way to pass the cheer when you’re on the road is to pay the toll for the car behind you. Do this and you might start to look at stoplights as holiday lights instead. Red means to stop and be thankful for a moment. Green means to out and do nice things.” What a coincidence! But you don’t have to spend money to show a RAK. How about letting the person behind you in the grocery line go first? Or go to the manager of the next store you shop at to tell him or her something nice about the person who checked you out. Or …. well, you get the idea. Share your other ideas with us.
Speaking of winning things, I totally forgot to announce the winner of our November Blog Contest last Friday. I think I was too involved with getting my holiday rules down (and you all added some very good ones to the list – thank you.) The winner of the November blog contest is: Genny. Genny has a fun Loopy credit in her account to spend on her next order. Thank you again for all of your great musical suggestions!
Lastly, we have more fun yarn coming from Cherry Tree Hill. We’ll be getting some very special Supersock, at a really good price (a savings which of course we pass right along to you.) More details when they arrive! We also just got a large shipment of Lorna’s Laces today, which we’ll be putting up. And we’re still working on this week’s Sneak Up for you. It’ll be a good one.
Sheri can’twaittohearaboutallofyourwonderfulkindnessesinthecomingmonth!
Um, I haven’t shouted at anybody yet today. Does that count? 😉
Hmm. Well, I found the perfect night-light for the kid on our company’s adopt-a-holiday-family thing. That was planned, though, so I don’t think it falls under the random part. Gonna have to work on that.
I’m definitely a believer in RAK. I live in an apartment complex with a fair number of older residents, and if I see someone struggling with heavy grocery bags I always offer to help.
It can be so easy to forget to be nice to people when you have a million errands to run, and cookies to bake, and packages to wrap and mail… Thanks for reminding us all to be kind – the holidays are the perfect time to add RAK into our daily routines, and maybe we’ll make them second-nature and continue the whole year through. 🙂
Not sure if this qualifies as the person knew that I was the one doing it, but I have a special neighbor going through a miserable, prolonged divorce and through and unintentional error had her gas cut off last spring, because nasty nature of the divorce and the fact the house is for sale she did not get the gas re-connected. However, it is now cold here and she was trying to live with a space heater. So, I called the gas company and have agreed to cover her bill should she not pay so she could have heat. Not totally random but I just had to do something for her.
Hubby and I were coming back from Thanksgiving and taking the shuttle from the airport to the subway. It was a bit crowded for 10:30pm, but we went to the back and found a seat for me and Hubby stood next to me. The young man I sat next to realized we were together and got up so we could sit together. So nice! He wouldn’t take no for an answer. Now I’m wondering what I should do for someone else!
I made the decision last week to not buy yarn (eeeek!) in late November and during December. That money instead would go to charity as a generous donation. It’s already made. http://www.offhanddesigns.com/fundraiser.html
When I was not very well off I lived in a Studio Apartment with no heat. I could only afford a tiny electric heater and believe me I was grateful for that. A coworker knew of my situation and came over with a very large electric heater. That was eyasr ago and i have never forgotten what that meant to me. We are still friends today.
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I shop at Publix Supermarket and most of the time they have bags for the needy. At the beginning of school it is school supplies, Holidays is food and during the year canned goods for the food banks. I always take a bag. It makes me aware that there are many people who are less fortunate than me. And on the way home while driving I think about all the things I am grateful for.
And it just so happens I am on my way to shop at Publix and will be buying a food bag today.
Well, it was a holiday weekend here in the restaurant business, which can get crazy. People are cranky and tired and want to impress their family. It can be very hard on our hostess to have all those people in her face demanding tables we don’t have. So, I got her this little rubber doll I saw in one of those 25-cent candy machines at the grocery store. He had flames for eyes. I named him “El Diablo” and told her that he was her mascot for the night and whenever people were really giving her a bad time, she could look at El Diablo to give her strength. She really perked up when I gave her El Diablo and carried him with her everywhere all weekend!
i had the chance to replace a set of DPN’s damaged by a knitter’s dog. i was hoping she would take me up on my offer, and I had the “Pay it Forward” argument all ready if she tried to tell me not to bother (after all, she had to share her snail mail for this to take place). Well, not only did she graciously accept my offer; she also wrote me the loveliest e-mail with her own “Pay It Forward” story from another time in her past. It was the most amazing coincidence of ideas.
I think the concept of paying it forward is sort of the corollary to random acts of kindness.
I gave a co-worker a knitted hat for his new baby today, I think that it seemed quite random to him, as we do not work directly with each other and not friends in any other way.
I will try to do something a little more random sometime today.
Also my officemate offered to run an errand for me as she was going to the mall over lunch… so that was a kindness paid to me.
Two little ones…
To me: I had to go out in the rain during work, and instead of having to take the elevator back upstairs to grab my umbrella, the security guy let me borrow his.
From me: On the way back from the above errand, a man was walking in front of me with an unzipped backpack and the contents gradually fell out. I helped him pick his papers up from the wet ground.
I feel funny telling someone about what I do. This is an act of kindness that lasts all during the school year. I take a little boy to the babysitter to save his mom and dad from having to leave work to pick him up. I really enjoy doing it because if I didn’t he might not be able to go to preschool and I know how much the kids enjoy it.
I always yield to more than one car that is merging onto the highway during rush hour. One is the norm around here, but I’d like to think not fighting to merge makes their day a bit brighter for that second person.
Last week I sent two movie tickets to my accounts receivable team member. She is in Calgary and I am in Vancouver. She emailed me and said that her and her husband haven’t been to a movie in 20 years….but both of them went on a date night with the tickets. That made me feel awesome. She is works really hard for our team and I think that sometimes she is taken for granted.
I love to bake and so yesterday I made 2 loaves of banana bread. I took a loaf over to my back yard neighbor who, on Friday, underwent her first chemo treatment for breast cancer.
Thanks for starting this new RAK contest. I will be more aware of people in need. Although RAK should be done with with no rewards, the Loopy prize certainly would be the icing on the cake!
When I was in college, I worked part time as a nanny. The little girl I took care of was sick, and I was at the pharmacy after taking her to the doctor. It was cold season, and the place was packed. The poor thing was very fussy, as she had an earache and was running a low fever. I was pretty frazzled as I had been running around all morning with her, and I must admit, a cranky, feverish three year old did not really help my state of mind. We got up to the counter to pick up her antibiotic, which was covered by her health insurance and I just had to pay the co-pay. Not a big deal, since it was less than 10 bucks and I had money given to me by her parents for occassions like this….but with all the rushing and fussing, I left my wallet in the car. I had resigned myself to packing the baby up and heading back out to the car to get it, then coming back in and waiting in line with her again, when an elderly woman behind me stepped up to the counter and insisted on paying. She wouldn’t take no for an answer, she said she remembered what it was like to have a sick toddler, and that if she could make my day a bit easier, she’d be glad to do so. Her RAK saved my sanity that day.
Fast forward seven years or so… a week ago, we had some unusually cold weather come through our area. I was at the pharmacy picking up a prescription, and there was a lady in front of me picking up about 5 or 6. She was an older lady, and was fumbling with her purse. She had a terrible cough and was all bundled up against the chilly wind. The line at the pharmacy counter was pretty long, and the cashier was being SO RUDE to her. It was obviously she couldn’t find what she was looking for, and she was getting really upset. Apparently, she had forgotten her wallet at home. I stepped up to the counter and paid for her meds. She didn’t want me to, but I wouldn’t take no for an answer.
I love RAK’s….I try to do a few a month, or more frequently when the situation allows.
Last week I was doing my Thanksgiving grocery shopping with my toddler in tow. He was getting increasingly cranky as the cart filled up, and was coming close to a meltdown as we got into line.
Although the woman in front of me had already started putting her things on the conveyor belt, she told me to go ahead of her. “I know how it is, and the last thing you need right now is to be trapped here feeling like a bad mother just because your little boy wants to go home”.
I couldn’t thank her enough!
I use to have a sticker in the back window of my car that said “Random Acts of
Kindness and something else I can’t remember. Not to blow my own horn,
but I have been practicing random acts of kindness since 1991. They are
getting few and far between because I am not too well. I have been giving money
to my friend who has nothing, several times a year.Sometimes I give it to her and
sometimes, I slip it under her door in an envelope so she doesn’t know who is
giving it. She also helps me out by
making big bowls of soup for me since I can’t do that anymore. I just gave her
some money last week and if I’m out, I’ll pick up some food for her. Also the
person before me mentioned “pay it forward”. That is a very good movie if
you haven’t watched it yet.
Well, last week, on the 21st, I was at Starbucks getting my morning green tea when the gentleman at the counter next to me ordered and then left his wallet in his car and ran out. I offered to pay (the barista looked shocked, out here in Cali I wonder if it’s not common to pay for anothers drink) and I paid. Well, the guy never came back so I took the drink (after waiting 10 minutes to make sure-he didn’t know I was paying so maybe it was too expensive) and delivered it to my office. The manager at SB gave me a coupon for a free drink which I used on someone else since I didn’t want a reward for doing the good deed. It was a RAK that went a little awry but hey, it’s the thought that counts! RAK are great…should be a year round thing we all do…:) But the holiday season does offer a new sense of generosity! 🙂
RAK done for me: Last week I had to renew my registration sticker for my car and get new plates. The bolts were rusted and I couldn’t take them out, so I had to stop by the shop to have them do it. I don’t feel so silly now about not being able to change my license plates since he had a difficult time, too. I asked him how much, and he said don’t worry about it. I even tried to make him take something for it but he wouldn’t.
Last week I took a food box to a family in our community who has had a lot of bad luck this year — lost job, ill child, very little in their minds to be thankful for. Few people know of their plight and while I was grocery shopping I decided to add them to my list and got them a turkey and all the trimmings plus some extras. I put the box on the porch, rang the bell and jumped into my car and drove off as they were answering the door. It was dark so they will never know who left the food. Made me feel really good inside.
This is such a wonderful idea!
My story doesn’t fit exactly into your request that we talk about a random act of kindness that happened to us but this post has reminded me of one of the most beautiful random acts of kindness that I witnessed a few months back that I want to share.
I was waiting in line at your Classic-ly Canadian coffee and doughnut joint a few months back. The person directly ahead of me in line was an older gentleman who was obviously struggling to keep things together and who likely hadn’t seen a decent meal in the last little while. He asked the clerk how much a cinnamon bun would cost him. She told him that it would be $1.75 or so. He opened his hand to reveal a little clutch of pocket change that would never even come close to that amount and proceeded to count it out. I watched and started to think about whether I was going to do the normal human thing and offer him the extra he’d need to get the cinnamon bun. As I reached into my wallet to pull out an extra dollar, a man from further back in the line went up to him and said to the cashier “Why don’t you just add that bun to my order.” he then went up to the man and asked “would you also like some soup, or how about a sandwich? Order whatever you want, it’s on me.” The older man ordered a sandwich to go with his cinnamon bun and a nice warm coffee.
I am still very much moved by that man’s kindness and humanism. It is something that inspired me to shed a cynicism in the face of my fellow man. Thank you for reminding me of that.
I hosted Thanksgiving this year for my entire family, which is enormous! I was glad to do it, but not only did people offer to walk my dog for me, they all left some money for me to help pay for all of the food! Some of them hid the money, and I only found it after they left and had cleaned up. Sneaky.
The weather here in Chicago and the surrounding suburbs has been bizarre this fall and winter. It was really warm then cold then back again. The leaves have taken forever to fall.
Finally most of them are down and this weekend I took to cleaning up my front and back yard, no easy task when you live in an established tree heavy area. The elderly woman at the end of the street has a huge corner lot. Until recently, she had a yard service come and do all the cleanup, there was no way for her to do it herself. This year, because she has been ill, there was no money for that and so she went out in the frigid cold and started doing it herself. After about ten minutes she was done.
After a friendly wave, she headed inside. I headed to all of the neighbours and before I knew it there were 12 of us outside making incredible progress in no time flat. By the time she realized what was going on, we had raked, edged and fertilized the entire thing. The look on her face and the tears in her eyes hit home harder than any words ever could.
It may not be the biggest RAK around but to see a neighbourhood like it should be, looking out for its own…. it was truly special.
I try to do RAK’s at least once a week. My mother’s health is not so good, and since June, she has either been in the hospital, a rehab facility, or now in a facility that deals with Alzheimer’s and Dementia. When she was in the rehab facility, I would vist her everyday and her roommate did not receive a lot of visitors, so when I would come, I would make sure that she also received a treat and would always ask if she needed anything. Even though my mom is no longer there, I drop in every weekend to see two of the ladies that are still there to make sure that they have a visitor and see if they need anything.
This year, when thing were really bad, many of my friends banded together and made sure that someone dropped off foodstuff every couple of days and they worked out a schedule to walk my dog for me so that I could stay at the hospital.
Kindness makes the world go around, not money!
I drove my kids to the bus stop this morning since it was raining. Not really a RAK since I do it when ever the weather is bad. But they sure appreciate it when they see the other teens standing in the rain. I always offer to let them wait in the van. We sometimes have a van load of kids. Not so many this morning though, just a few took me up on the offer.
What fun! I have done that with Dairy Queen in the summer when it is really hot and busy. I also signed up to do the pass it on thang on Fiberfishes blog. Have you heard about it? You send a handmade gift to 3 people some time in the next 365 days! –
Mine isn’t totally random, but there’s a very sweet single mom in our church, and my DH and I left an unsigned “thank you” card for her with a $100 bill tucked inside. We’ve been blessed and wanted to be a blessing to someone else.
Another idea – and this involves the same single mom – but we have no idea who is doing this – but someone sends her son a card every year in February with money in it and instructions for him to take her out on Valentine’s Day. Whoever is doing this has been doing so since her son was young (he’s 14 now).
We have three dogs, one of which does agility, and the agility people in our neck of the woods are really good at cleaning up after their dogs. The people in my neighborhood aren’t so consistent. My random act has become so regular it’s no longer random, though I hope it still counts for the drawing. : ) Every time I pick up after one of our dogs, I pick up after somebody else’s dog. This is keeping the lawn at the elementary school across the street just a little bit better looking, and better smelling . . .
Thanks for a great idea! I’m taking on the challenge of adding to my regular random acts something truly random in future weeks. When I lived on the East Coast, I used to pay the toll for the person behind me. I miss that — it really cheered up the drive.
A few nights ago, the boys told me that a van had pulled up our driveway. I went to the front door to see who it might be. My neighbor from across the street had come by with a casserole for us “just because”. I often give her our outgrown toys for her much younger boys and she said that while this meal could not pay me back for all the toys, it was something she could offer us.
I was so touched by the complete randomness of the meal as I hadn’t given her new toys in months. It’s hard to put the feeling into words but it meant a lot to me that she thought of me while she shopped and cooked and delivered our meal.
A number of years ago, I paid the toll for the guy behind me. – Not totally random, since we’d just left a bar/club where we’d been talking for quite awhile, but it still surprised him.
More recently (sometime last year), I was driving home with one of the dogs in the car, & as I came to a stop-sign a few blocks from home, a woman sitting in a car at the side of the road called out her window imploring me to call the police. I looked & saw that several of her car windows had been smashed. She had 2 small kids with her. I parked the car & went over to her, & she told me that her boyfriend had smashed the windows, taken her cell-phone & the car keys, & went off. I let her use my cell phone to call the police, stayed there helping keep the kids calm & under control til the police came & while she gave them a report. I called my daughter (who was at home a few blocks away) & had her come walk the dog home. I let the woman use my phone to make a few more calls & wound up staying with her until a relative came to pick her & the kids up.
Acts of kindness done for me, which I’ll never forget:
(1) As I stepped off a Metro bus (sometime in 1989!), I dislocated my ankle. I was only 4 blocks from home, but as I couldn’t stand on that foot, let alone walk, I hopped over to a tree & had to lean against it. A passerby called 911 for me, & a young woman who got off the bus at the same time waited with me until the ambulance came, as I was feeling very lightheaded (I’d gone into shock).
(2) While driving back from an out-of-town trip with my daughter, then around 4 or 5 yrs old, one of my tires blew out, with pieces flying everywhere. This was around 9-to-10pm on the Capital Beltway (Rte 495, where traffic moves at 70mph in the slow lane despite a 55mph limit). A stranger pulled over immediately behind me & offered to change the tire for me. I started to pull things out of the trunk so we could get the spare out, & he took over & told me to just take care of my daughter & he’d take care of the rest, which he did, including putting everything back in the trunk afterwards. He refused to take any money for his troubles, & said that if I really wanted to do something, I should just donate to a charity of my choice (which I did).
I think that’s a wonderful idea!!! Thank you for enabling us to do wonderful things (not that buying yarn isn’t a wonderful thing – you’re quite the enabler in that department as well.) And I’m quite impressed that you still paid for Sports Car Guy – ‘cuz I’d just been thinking, “Yeah, I’ll do that! But probably only if the guy behind me has a crappier car than I do.” Heh….whoops.
I had a lady come up to me after a training class one day, and she praised my public speaking ability and then told me that she thought I was quite pretty. It was such an unusual thing, an unsolicited flattery on my appearance, and I was completely touched. So I’ve tried to adopt that from her – so often when someone pays us a compliment, we feel uncomfortable. And so we tend not to compliment others so we don’t make them uncomfortable – how silly! So any time I look at someone and think something complimentary, I try to tell them also, in a non-threatening way. (You know the sort of thing – you’re with your husband and you whisper, “Look at that girl’s hair. It’s so shiny and pretty.” Or “Isn’t that woman just stunning, so smartly dressed?” So now, if I can, rather than glancing at and away from the girl in front of me in the grocery line, I’ll tell her, “You have such a pretty smile.” Or, if I’m feeling shy that day, I’ll say it to my husband, but loudly enough that I know she’ll hear me. Subversive compliments can sometimes easier for people to enjoy.
i seem to be very lucky and have had a lot of random acts of kindness bestowed upon me throughout the years. the biggest and the most poignant was of course when a new york city bus driver put aside my clarinets which i had left on his bus at 3am coming (i was playing professionally at the time so i had a case with 5000 dollars worth of clarinets and traveling through queens and brooklyn to get home from the airport) and called an old number i had left inside the case, when that didn’t work, did an internet search and found my email address. he then emailed me and kept my clarinets safe for the four days he was searching how to find me! i knew i couldn’t repay him for his kindness so i went and got him a 50 dollar gift card for a big cd and music store in the city because he also gave me the gift of music. this was back in 2002, people seemed to rally together and do nice things for strangers so often after the towers fell, but this bus driver went way out of his way for me. thank you mr. bus driver again for rescuing my favorite clarinets!
I’ve had someone pay for my toll at one of the Chicago tollways. It was such a small amount that really made a big impression.
The local groceries always have the pre-bagged food around the holidays. I always buy one at least 2 or 3 times during the holiday season.
Amanda’s story (2 above) brought tears to my eyes…what a nice guy.
My fiance and I took a 3-day trip to San Francisco a few years ago. We decided to stay in a nice hotel close to downtown and just hoof it around the city all weekend – we couldn’t really afford to ride the busses, trolleys, or subways. However, when we were waiting to check in to our hotel, a man walked up to me and asked if I was checking in. When I said yes, he handed me 2 week-long metro passes with 3 days left on them! I guess it didn’t really cost him anything, as his family was checking out, but it was very kind of him to think of people who could use the passes, rather than just throw them out.
Last year, I “payed it forward” while traveling in Sweden by giving my Stockholm Metro pass to someone waiting in the subway station as I was leaving the country.
these aren’t lately but
one to me – my coworker gave me a really nice gel pen because he knew I liked them.
one from me – I let a guy go ahead of me in the Wal-mart line and this Wal-mart always has long lines. 🙂
My random act of kindness today was to help a friend (who works in a yarn shop)
to help rearrange the display shelves! It is NOT her favorite thing to do, as she
says she doesn’t have the eye to do it!
Instead for giving gifts to each other, two friends and I have adopted a Katrina victum family (mother, father and 5 children) who have had to move in with the women’s mother. We got their name from a local Care and Concern Shelter. We are purchasing gifts to be opened the 12days before Christmas. These will include a movie night…complete with a current movie,, snacks and a comfy blanket/throw to sit upon.
Another package will contain a gift card for a Pizza, a cute pizza cutter and a disposable camera to record the event. We did this last year for a women and her childrenr that were going through a difficult time and were truly the recipients of a special blessing. Each day’s gifts will include a Bible Verse that points to Christmas and God’s special care for those in need. Wkhen the large box of gifts is delivered, there will be a card that says……Merry Christmas from HIS MAJESTY’s SECRET SERVICE
Sheri, what a great idea. Even though that guy had a fancy sports car, you just never know what’s going on with him — he might be lonely or recently divorced or just lost his job. Or he might just be pleasantly surprised by another’s kindness!
Incorporating kindness into every day is a wonderful idea. I’m gathering up our old but still warm and serviceable winter coats and sneakers and donating them to a local shelter. I know they always need donations of new socks and underwear, so I’ll stop by Target first, too.
I love RAK. Sometimes I get my boss a peanut butter cookie from our favorite bakery here just because I know he loves them. 🙂 I also found the face mask my room mate looked at three stores for when I was in CVS one day, so I bought a bottle for her. My mom was having a hard day last Monday so I brought her a lemon bar (sooooo tasty, I bought one for me too!). I try to hold doors, let people go in front of me in line, and pass along the savings if I find a good one every day.
But, can I think of any RAKs I’ve done in the last few days? Not really, I’ve been holed up in my house and haven’t had the chance. lol
I decided to forgo the thanksgiving festivities this year and instead served dinner to a community of people in NYC living with HIV/AIDS.
I found it was a great way to stop feeling sorry for myself when things didn’t turn out quite how I wanted them to.
I always, ALWAYS let the people with less items than me go ahead. I have Murphy’s Law with lines, so I know that I better get the people behind me out as fast as possible.
Last year I took the kids to the local fair where they zipped through rides like they were going out of style. I had THREE people come up to me with ride tickets they had left over, such a nice thing to do!
I’d like to add that random acts of kindness don’t need to involve money, or items, or anything material. They don’t have to anonymous. Sometimes it’s just taking the time to tell a stranger you appreciate them.
Most people don’t know what I do for a living. They may have a vauge idea, “Oh, Julia works at the animal shelter.” or “Julia is a veterinary technician”.
I work in a shelter for sick and injured stray animals that also investigates animal cruelty charges. I see every horrible thing that people can do to an animal – using them as target practice, starving them to death, setting them on fire. I am also directly responsible for the euthanasia of roughly 100 homeless animals every week. And, in payment, most of the time all we get is public scorn, nasty articles in the paper about our euthanasia rate, and the knowledge that I’m one of the few people who have the strength to offer kindness and care to animals that have gotten the short end of a very small stick.
Two weeks ago, after a nasty, brutal article in the paper about the behavior evaluation we put all of our adoptable dogs through, someone cornered me while I was giving medications out in adoptions. I have no idea who she is, but she took my hand, looked me in the eye and said, “Thank you for everything you do. I wouldn’t have the heart for it. These animals are very lucky there are people like you in the world.”
And then she left. I had to be one the nicest things anyone has every done for me, and, for once, made me really feel like people appreciate what I do, and that I’m doing something worthwhile.
This is so little, I am not even sure it qualifies as a RAK, but every time I use the vending machine here in our office building (2-3 times a week), I leave the change from my dollar in the little change return slot for someone else to find and use. It’s only 10-50 cents at a time, but it’s nice to find money (especially money which can be spent on snacks) and if that brings someone a teeny bit of happiness during what I am imagine is normally a crappy work day, it makes me feel good.
Last week I heard about a co-worker that had just completed his Master’s degree after many long years of night school. I bought a bunch of balloons and tied them to his desk.
Well, my youngest DD was born at 24 weeks gestation, and weighed 1.5 lbs. Yes, One and a half pounds. All of the times that we nearly lost her, the same doctor was on-call. He was an older gentleman, who garnered my respect very early on. As she started to get better (but still very sick and about 2 lbs now), he asked me if I listened to any classical music – HELLO – music major in a former life. He said that he read studies that Brahms was thought to promote intelligence in preemies, etc.
I immediately rushed out that night, and got a bedside tape-player, and some Brahms. But alas, when I got to her incubator the next morning, there was a fresh stack of Brahms music there. Hmmm………..He never said a word, but I knew it was him. My daughter will be six years old in a couple of months……she’s doing really well – a miracle!
I love RAK’s – they always make me feel better as the giver, rather than the receiver though! 🙂
I had my wallet returned to me once when I had dropped it in a Home Depot parking lot– before I even realized I had lost it! That had me marveling about my karma for a good long while afterward. Sometimes it’s just nice to be reminded that there are kind, compassionate people out there. I know I’ve had days when I’ve felt like there aren’t!
This RAOK actually got me on the road to a love of fiber arts, unintentionally.
When I was pregnant with my son (now 6) my husband and I were really hard up for money.. so we weren’t able to buy things ahead of time for the baby like folks do when they are expecting. I was really upset when I went into labor an entire month early and didn’t even have clothing for the baby. When the nurses came back from giving my son his first bath.. he was wearing tiny hand knitted baby booties and a little hat. I was so touched that someone had spent their time to make something for someone that they didn’t even know that I swore I’d learn to knit or crochet so that I could repay the kindness one day. About a year later I learned to crochet and the first thing I did was make baby booties and hats for the local hospitals. I still try to make at least one baby set a year and donate them because I know how happy those simple little knits made me feel.
Our neighbor brought us a pecan pie for thanksgiving, still warm from the oven. A few months ago my husband and I got a new washer and dryer 🙂 and our neighbors was broken, so we gave them our old ones to bless them 🙂 It is so fun when everyone starts looking for ways to bless others instead of tear them down!
I used to do RAOK more frequently and have gotten out of the habit so thank you for the reminder. But I will tell you that Saturday night Dale and I went out to dinner and we had the most wonderful waitress. She was sweet and friendly and helpful and we just really liked her a lot. I made a point of asking for the manager when we left and I sang her praises high. I always appreciate it when someone tells me my staff did something good and I thought I’d return the favor.
I don’t know know if this is a RAK in the sense that I didn’t recieve anything other than that warm happy feeling…but… here goes anyway. My pastor shared a story with our Church Sunday Morning about my son. My husband had told it to him during Monday night visitation and he shared it sunday will the whole church. I had been fighting with my husband and hearing the story made me realize that we are good parents and we love each other and nothing else should matter. So his act of kindness was reminding me what I have to be thankful for and it was worth more than anything I could have recieved.