Stories of Kindness from Around the World

The first lesson encourages us to examine how we treat others. It was my second month of college. 
One day, our professor decided to be spontaneous 
and announced the sudden arrival of a pop quiz for all 
of the classmates.

I was a rather conscientious student. I was particular about 
completing the daily homework assignments, and always stayed
after class to probe the professor with detail-oriented questions
which were at times unnecessary. At any rate, I wasn't 
worried about bombing the quiz, so I naturally breezed through the 
questions, well that is, until I read the last one, which read:

"What is the first name of the woman who cleans
the school?"

I thought to myself that this question surely was a joke or at the most an 
extra credit question. I spent a few seconds thinking about the cleaning woman anyway. 
I had seen her several times. She was tall, dark-haired, and in her 50s, but I felt that I was justified
in feeling that it wasn't a big deal that I didn't know her name. How would I know her
name? In fact, I didn't and I never thought to ask her. So, I handed in my paper, leaving the last question
blank.
 
Just before the class ended, one student asked if
the last question would count toward our quiz grade.

"Absolutely," said the professor and he continued, "In
your careers,you will meet many people. All are 
significant. They deserve your attention 
and care, even if all you do is smile and say "hello" and ask them their name. 
Perhaps that mild but meaningful gesture, may
make you think twice when you sit down in your chairs and notice that 
they are a little shinier, or that your classroom is a little cleaner, or that 
your computers are running a bit more smoothly because of just that one person. 

I passed the quiz that day, but I missed the real life test. 
Since then, I have never forgotten that lesson. 
I also learned that the Cleaning Lady's name 
was Dorothy.