Stories of Kindness from Around the World

I recently was taking a trip out of town and had to get up early to catch a flight.

A friend who lives a ten minutes from the airport had kindly offered to drop me there on his way to work that morning. I planned to drive to his house, park my car there, and then carpool with him the rest of the way. It turns out, I didn't leave early enough, as I hit up against some very unexpected traffic along the way. At 6:10 AM, I literally moved one mile in 45 minutes. (In no traffic, it would only take 25 minutes to drive to this friend's house.)

Given the early hour, I hadn't budgeted much buffer time for traffic into this trip. It was a workday morning, and I didn't want to make my friend late for work, so as I sat stalled in traffic, I called him to let him know I could just park the car at his house and then take the subway to the airport. But he insisted that he wouldn't be late and that he was happy to still offer a ride. By the time I finally got through the traffic, he informed me, "You'll miss your flight if you stop at our house. We'll meet you at the airport!"

This meant that he, his wife, and their infant would all pile into their car, just to meet me at the airport before the start of their workday! I was hesitant to receive such an offering-- as they would be really going out of their way and doing all the heavy-lifting. But he immediately balked my protest with a simple, "What are friends for?"

The thing was, these are friends I actually don't know all that well. They are childhood friends of an older sibling of mine, and I was always friendly with them, but from a distance. We were not very up-to-date or involved in each others' lives. Given this loose kinship, I was truly disarmed by their genuine intentions go the extra mile for no other reason but to help me out. There was really nothing else in it for them.

But friends are friends, and I'm grateful for these friends for teaching me the heart-expanding power of such genuine acts of grace.

When I arrived at the airport, they pulled up behind me shortly after. We exchanged keys and quick hugs as I hastily expressed my profuse gratitude-- upon which they effortlessly and instantly replied, "It's no problem!" The words were uttered in a way that I could tell they really meant it-- from the bottom of their hearts. Really. No. Problem.

I rushed inside, moved through security, and then ran to my gate, where the screen read "Final Boarding Call" and the only face in sight was that of the ticket attendant. Handing her my boarding pass, I curiously asked, "Am I the last one?"

"Almost," she replied with a smile.

As I eased down the ramp, I received a 2-word text message from my two generous friends: "Make it?"

I entered the plane, plunked down into my empty seat, and felt my shoulders sigh in relief.

"On the plane :)" I texted back.

"Yes!" and "Woohoo!" were their immediate replies. A smile spread across my face as I turned my phone off for the flight. Nothing like an epic airport adventure to deepen the bonds between childhood acquaintances. :)

As the flight prepared for take-off, I noticed my must-be-together-and-responsible impulses and "you-should-have-expected-traffic-and-left-home-sooner" thoughts fade into the stillness of a quiet humility -- one that comes when you have no choice but to accept such gestures of pure-hearted kindness. And, with a heart brimming with gratitude, to trust that, when the time is ripe, nature's eternal rhythms will bestow a perfect opportunity to pay-it-all-forward.

My eyes and ears are peeled... :)