Stories of Kindness from Around the World

Where's The Jelly?

I just came in from the grocery store. I only needed one item but the woman in line before me had spent more than the money she had in her hand.  As she checked out her 2-3 packed bags, she asked the cashier to put the jelly back so she would have enough money to cover the bill. As she paid, I looked at her and told her I was going to buy that jelly for her. She said, "Oh no, you don't have to. I just didn't grab enough money when I left my home." I looked at her and happily said, "That's okay.  Perhaps you could return the favor to someone else."  Caught up in the spirit of generosity, she tried to offer me something else until she landed upon an idea -- "Can I give you some of my "Turkey points?"   At this store, they give you Turkey ... Read Full Story >>

Trees DO grow in Brooklyn!

Almost forty years ago, back on 12th Street between 8th Ave and Prospect Park West in Brooklyn, a group of people decided to hold a block party.  The money raised was for planting trees on each side of the street. 

And so we planted some trees.  The trees were so small, they were almost comical!  Still, they meant a lot to a small group of teenagers who lived on the block.  Teenagers like me.

Fast forward some years, and the last time I went back to Brooklyn, I actually saw those little saplings turn into beautiful, full grown, majestic trees! 

I looked up to the sky and thanked God for such a creation, for giving life to such a small seed planted in the hearts of a few people so many years ago!

Three Homeless Men

A friend of mine in Chicago sent me an e-mail with her description of an uplifting event that she witnessed... "And talking about beautiful...yesterday I was witness to such a heartwarming random act of kindness. It will forever be imprinted in my mind. I had to run downtown to help Bonnie out for a few hours (it was not part of my original plans for Monday). On my bus ride back to the train station, we were in gridlock traffic right by the opera house. As I stare out my window a handsome young man (25ish to 30ish) walks out of the side door of the Opera House. It's cold and windy outside. He has on a heavy army-issued jacket and a scarf wrapped around his neck. As he's walking towards the bridge there are three homeless men with their cups, each sitting maybe 15 feet from one other. The young man ... Read Full Story >>

A Can of Coke at the Laundromat

I was at the laundramat the other day and the cutest little guy was in there with his Mom.   As he watched TV and trying to help his mom, I learned that his name was Jay.

Jay told his Mom he was thirsty and she told him he'd have to wait a while to get a drink.  A short time later, he asked again and got the same response.  So I approached his Mom and said, "You know, my own son is all grown up now and living so far away. I really miss him. Would you allow me the pleasure of buying your son a soda pop?" She smiled and thanked me, saying yes, calling her son over.

I bought Jay the soda then asked, with his Mom's permission, if he would hand out some smile cards to people he saw that needed a smile. He agreed so I gave him some cards, reminding him not to talk to strangers unless his Mom was with him.

His Mom and I chatted while we finished our laundry and then I left, not only with a warm feeling over buying him the soda, but because it made me miss my own son a wee bit less ... and I made a new friend to boot!

From The Heart, Thoughts By John Mayer

John Mayer, a popular singer/song writer, recently wrote this on his personal blog and I thought I'd share... FROM THE HEART…. I need to write this. I've been traveling alone in Japan for the better part of three weeks now, and It's been so remarkable an experience for me that I can't book a ticket home yet. I haven't spoken very much out loud these days, but I've been thinking to myself in what feels like surround sound. I can see so many things clearly, and feel so connected to myself and the world around me that I need to share the perspective with you. I'm already aware that when I sing, say or write anything, 50 percent of the response will be in support of it and the other 50 will want to discount it. This blog, though, is directed to 100 percent of people reading it. If my blog truly does have ... Read Full Story >>

An Inspiring Little Boy

     Once a 10 years old kid went to an Ice cream-Corner. He sat near a table and asked the waiter," How much for an ice cream cone please?" Waiter replied, "25 Rupees."
     The kid started counting his money. Later he asked the price of small ice cream cup. The waiter a little bit annoyingly said," 20 Rupees."
     The boy said," I would like the small ice cream cup." The boy ate the ice cream, paid the bill and went away.
     The waiter went to pick up his empty cup and what he saw there shocked him and tears came in his eyes. Near the cup, the boy had kept 5 Rupees as his tip.
     Before ordering for ice cream, the boy had cared for the waiter. The boy had showed qualities of respect and caring. Before thinking for himself he thought for others.

     If we all started thinking for others, like the small child, how beautiful the world would become!! Think of others and give them polite and loving behaviour with a smile!

Unblocking a Traffic Jam

I was driving to the store in the evening when it's frequently back-to-back traffic on the narrow street I like to take.  This night was even worse than usual, but since it was dark I couldn't tell what was going on until I got right up on top of the problem.    There was an old car which had apparently conked out and since there is only one lane going in either direction, every one behind him was stuck.  The on-coming lane was thick with it's normally heavy traffic and none of them was giving any of the blocked cars a chance to enter their lane to go around the dead car.   When I was able to edge forward far enough to turn onto a side street, I parked and ran over to the driver of the stranded car and told him I would help.  I waved to the cars behind him (since the car was going uphill) and got them to ... Read Full Story >>

1 Hour = New Life

One of my tenants has passed through a  bad patch after her husband started neglecting the family by not going to work.  She finally left her husband and is now faced with raising their 3 children by herself. Last week I made it a point to dedicate some time to her.  She has not been working for a long time and it is difficult for her to get any social benefits. I picked her up from her rented apartment and took her to my wife’s boss who needs someone to take care of his home. Everything went very well and he gave her the job right there and then. Then I drove her to his house so that she would not get lost the next day which was to be her first day of work. I have also granted her permission to accommodate language students to generate some extra income ... Read Full Story >>

Halloween Candy Robbery

Last year, when my son and I were out trick-or-treating on Halloween, we saw two young girls ahead of us.  One was dressed as an angel and one was a cowgirl; as they reached the corner of the street, two teenage punks ran by and stole the girls candy.  The older one ran after them and the younger one started to cry.  (They were obviously almost finished, as their bags were full.) 

My little boy went up to the little girl and gave her and her sister ALL of his candy. 

By this time, the little girl crying had attracted a lot of attention.  All the neighbors chipped in and everyone went home with plenty of candy.  

As for the thugs -- in a small town like this, everyone knows each other and they made restitution by means of community service.  And my little boy, he's known by his heart of pure gold -- I am so proud!

The Maverick Man Who Helped Me

A man commonly known as the Maverick Man used to be a fixture in the city I live in.  He lived in a 1970's van parked in a parking lot and walked up and down the same street for 20 years.  Everyone who knew him loved him and all the local businesses help him out.  They allowed him shave in the mens room and the Jack in the Box would even give him free food.  He spent his time helping and giving advice to everyone that he saw.  One time I walked by him, crying and very upset.  He saw me walking by the street and went up to me while I was waiting for the bus.  I told him that a very close person in my life, had passed away and then I broke down crying.  Maverick Man sat down by me and said "Little girl..do not weep for ... Read Full Story >>

Reaching Out To A Stranger

Yesterday a woman struggling with her addiction to alcohol reached out looking for help. I don't know her but felt like I crossed her path for a reason so I asked her how I could help. She said that she was tired of being drunk all of the time and it is hurting her family and small children. I have known some alcoholics close to me and admire anyone who reaches out and tries to change their path in life. She was grateful for my offer to help and told me her story. She wanted so much to break the cycle that has plagued her father, grandfather and others. I offered to send her a care package to help her as she goes through this. Her husband is in the military so he is not around to help her as much as she could use. Last night, I bought a ... Read Full Story >>

Just A Little Boost

My good-willed but completely overwhelmed sister-in-law  has 2 dogs which got loose a couple of months ago and were picked up by animal control.   When she bailed them out of the shelter, she was mandated to get rabies vaccinations and send proof to the city by a certain date. Typically, she let this slide until the city sent her a threatening follow up letter and began leaving notes on her door.  Instead of just dealing with it, she reacted with anxiety and did nothing - not even open the letter from animal control. Of course this made her even more anxious.  But no amount of encouragement or warnings my husband or I gave her seemed to be able to move her to take any action.   I was afraid the city might do something drastic and create even more severe problems for someone who already could barely handle her current situation, so I finally decided to contact animal control myself and explained that I ... Read Full Story >>

On Albert Einstein

 When Albert Einstein was making the rounds of the speaker's circuit, he usually found himself eagerly longing to get back to his laboratory work. One night as they were driving to yet another rubber-chicken dinner, Einstein mentioned to his chauffeur (a man who somewhat resembled Einstein in looks & manner) that he was tired of speech making. "I have and idea, boss," his chauffeur said. "I've heard you give this speech so many times. I'll bet I could give it for you." Einstein laughed loudly and said, "Why not? Let's do it!" When they arrive at the dinner, Einstein donned the chauffeur's cap and jacket and sat in the back of the room. The chauffeur gave a beautiful rendition of Einstein's speech and even answered a few questions expertly. Then a supremely pompous professor ask an extremely esoteric question about anti-matter formation, digressing here and there to let everyone in the audience know that ... Read Full Story >>

Girl Scout Cookies Come Full Circle!

Friday afternoon I was at the grocery store when I saw two young girls selling Girl Scout cookies.  I smiled and thought of who I could "tag" with some cookies.  Well, to my dismay, when I opened my wallet I realized that I had just $2.50.  The cookies cost $3.50   (and of course they don't take credit cards!) so I pondered my dilemma for a moment or two.
Then I knew just what to do.... I went up to the girls' mother and said "I'd really like to buy a box of cookies, but I'm a dollar short....could you take this money and tell the next person who comes to buy from you that they only owe you a dollar? I was going to give the cookies away anyway!"  The mom was really happy and surprised and got the idea right away and said sure, no problem.
I wandered off to do my shopping and thought no more about it.

Well, imagine my surprise when I came home the next day and found
a box of Girl Scout cookies "gifted" to my family from a neighbor!

Pretty cool, eh?! :-) 

Teaching Kids About Paying it Forward

A friend of ours experienced an "incident" when her friend's child was visiting. The child apologized and wrote a letter to my friend saying that he would be happy to "rake leaves, clean the house, do chores...anything to make up for the mistake".  Well, my friend wrote back saying "How about instead of doing it for us, you find someone in your neighborhood--an elderly person or someone else who needs help, and you give us the gift of helping that person".

By giving the child grace and the opportunity to make a relationship with an elderly neighbor, I am sure he will learn far more than if he had been "punished" for his misdeed.

Give someone you know the opportunity to pay it forward--what a gift
that ripples all over!!  :-)

Small Dose of Hope, Thirty Years Ago

When I was in my first year of college, I hit a stretch where every area of my life was a disaster, I felt hopeless and alone, and more depressed than I knew was possible. On one such day, I was walking from class across campus to catch my bus home, head down, fighting tears of total despair, when a guy came down the sidewalk toward me. I had never seen him before.  Embarrassed at being seen in such an emotional mess, I turned my head away and hoped to hurry past.  I figured he'd walk on by, but he moved until he was directly in front of me, waited until I looked up, then smiled.  Looking into my eyes, this stranger spoke in a quiet voice: "Whatever is wrong will pass. You're going to be ok, just hang on."   He, then, smiled again and walked away. I can't explain ... Read Full Story >>

My Chat Mate

Lately these days, I have a regular chat mate. We chat for an hour. She makes me laugh. She lessens my homesickness in this foreign land when I see her smile on the Web cam. Every time I see her lowering her head as she types the letters, I anticipate what she has to type. Just this afternoon, she learned how to use the audibles. It was an afternoon filled with fun and love.

Throughout the entire time we chat, though, I can't  understand a single word.  My chat mate is my dearest sister who has Downs Syndrome.

Chatting with her is the most remarkable feeling.  She may not understand what I am typing on the screen and I may not understand what she's typing but I can see the way she nods and she can see the way I laugh, and deep in our hearts, we feel connected.

Always eager, we both show up for each other everyday.  We try to communicate with words and typed sentences, but really, no words are even needed.

Lending A Hand To My Parents

Yesterday I went to visit and clean for my mum and stepfather.  Whenever I go, I always feel like I've ironed out a few problems for them; you see, my mum is disabled and my step-dad is her carer. 

Sometimes, I do there shopping on line for them -- anything I can do for them that helps to make life easier I do.  Like last week, my step-dad was in a panic because he needed to take there car to the garage as the headlights were set to high and other drivers had been flashing at him, so I explained that it may be that they just needed adjusting on the dashboard and that I could do that, so off I went and sorted it.  He said he never knew you could do that, and he thought he was going to have to make a special journey to the garage and that it was a weight of his mind. 

Little things like this are gigantic worries for old folks and can easily be sorted.  I phone them every day and they know that I am always on the other end of the phone and  this gives them peace of mind ... and it makes me feel good.

Mother And Son With Autism Going On The Road

[We have put our home on sale, to underwrite the costs of going on tour.  Learn more online. --Monica ]    Monica Moshenko of Clarence has her own twice-a-week radio program, a show on disabilities that has featured interviews with actors Henry Winkler and Teri Garr and Lt. Gov.-elect David A. Paterson.     Not to be outdone, her son, Alex, 13, has his own radio show, "Al's Wrestling Talk," which airs live on the Internet every Saturday night.     This is a high-powered tandem -- a mother who has become a passionate advocate for the disabled and a teen with a very high-functioning form of autism.The Moshenkos plan to take their radio shows on the road for the coming year, touring America in a recreational vehicle.     The goal is to meet and greet people with disabilities, raise the public's awareness about the disabled -- and perhaps catch a few wrestling matches along the ... Read Full Story >>

Just One Hand

All it takes is one hand to change the world.

Three days ago, at Wal-Mart, I saw a mother holding a sleeping baby girl, she was alone and trying to get all of her groceries and things onto the sliding thing.

I noticed that it looked kind of difficult with only one hand and an entire cart!  So I peeked over and asked if she needed any help. She paused for a moment and smiled, and said, "Yes,  she's very tired."

So I grabbed her things and put them on the sliding thing. It really wasn't much but it felt good and I'm glad that I did it.