A Grand Gift From An Unexpected Friend

--by gracieliz, posted Jul 10, 2009

One day I went into a shop for a specific sort of metal polish. The bowl I needed to polish is made by Nambe, and I had inherited it from my mother.

While I was in the shop, I saw an older woman looking around at things, and thought I would begin a conversation to liven things up. We hit it off and were showing some of the handcrafted items to each other. She said she was in the shop to purchase a wedding gift for a nephew, whose wedding she wouldn't be able to attend.

We wandered off seperately and wound up together again at the cash register. I commented on the beautiful bowl she had chosen, and how lovely so many of the items were. She asked what I was purchasing, and I showed her my tube of polish. I said I might buy more of the Nambe items when my kids were all grown and gone, but they weren't in my budget right now. I just like to look, as I would in an art gallery.

She asked me what some of my favorites were, and I said I liked the salt and pepper shakers, as I had some old Tupperware things I'd had for years. She asked me to show her where the shakers were, so we walked over. She picked up my favorites and took them to the clerk.

I thought she was pleased with my taste, and was going to add them to her nephew's gift. No. They were purchased for me. Ninety dollars worth. I couldn' t believe it. She laughed and hugged me, and said her husband would never know, but she really enjoyed being able to do that for me. I never saw her again after that day, but I think of her each time I put those beautiful objects on my table.

Remembering that experience helps me to stay aware and find opportunities to give to others, though not in quite such a grand way!

5067 Reads

Posted by gracieliz
Jul 10, 2009
Comments (16)

Readers Comments

JuneBug wrote: WOW! And I mean..WOW! You were rewarded because she saw your kind soul...That's awesome,gracieliz! :)

AURELIA wrote: Incredible gift of generosity! I'm sure it meant a lot for her to be able to do that for you. Thank you for graciously accepting her gift to you. :0)~ Aurelia

Grammagussie wrote:

I wonder who was the happiest with her generous gift. You'll find a time to play it forward, maybe to a child.

iferlamb wrote: Wow! How very nice of her and for you. Thank you for sharing this story of giving.

Smiles.

shruti wrote: This shows---"still there r kind hearted ppl in this world. "who care abt others.

DR.TAHIRA wrote: You get real happiness in giving than when getting one gift! .

ripple wrote: Wow, kindness just ripples on.

monkeyinpajamas wrote: This is a really beautiful act :)
Makes me think people are not only kind, but more importantly, they are courageous enough to show it.

anniejames wrote: Kindness is also twice blessed i guess :)

Smitha wrote: That was incredible. Wow! To give, to receive!

May she always get lots of gifts and lots of happines.

-love, latesha

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