Stories of Kindness from Around the World

Today I showed kindness. It may seem like a simple thing, but I showed it to someone who hurt me beyond belief.  This year has been the worst of my life: I lost my mom, my job, my fiancee and soon my home. I thought this year would change my life for the better, but I was wrong.

I fell in love and he asked me to marry him. We decided we would make a change and move to Baltimore to be closer to our friends. I left Philadelphia, found a home, and although I had lost my job, I took my unemployment to find a new home for us to get together and for him to move and join me at the end of June. We were to be married in September. One month before he was to move, he just cut off contact with me. For almost 7 weeks, he hasn't returned a phone call, an email, nothing.

In the meantime, I haven't been able to find a job in Baltimore or DC and the life I thought I had I've watched slowly diminish to nothing.  Friends, with the exception of one, have fallen away and I'm alone, unemployed, almost homeless and more afraid and in pain than I've ever been in my life.

Yesterday, he finally sent me an email. He stated that he was scared and took the coward's way out and that he did love me. I read his words and to say that I was filled with anger would be an understatement. For months all I've felt was heartache. For two weeks, suicide has been the one constant thought in my head. I feel as if I'm nothing more than wasted space on this earth.  In his own way, however, I knew he was seeking some sort of forgiveness from me - so he could move on. I swallowed my own pain and I gave it to him.

I do understand that he was afraid; we seem to live in a world where no one believes in love or kindness to one another. We seem to someone have progressed to self-serving beings. It seems so much easier to step over someone on the street. Even returning a "good morning" or "hello" seems too much of an effort. I forgave him in the hopes I could release some of his pain and my own.

In two weeks or less, I'll probably be homeless - something I've never experienced in my life. I've always worked; always taken care of myself. Even though I'm in the midst of interviewing for an amazing DC job, I know it will probably come too late for me. Forgiving him made me feel somewhat human again. He needed it... so did I. The couple of friends I still have, try and keep me from being isolated and they do what I need most - they pray for me. If I can ask anything, I would ask that you pray for me. Pray that God touches the heart of my landlords to let me stay a bit longer; pray that I get this job in DC; pray for my peace of mind and that I have the strength not to let go. Thank you.