Stories of Kindness from Around the World

I was getting out of my car at my local supermarket one night and a woman with a backpack approached me asking for money.  I offered to buy her a sandwhich and she told me that she had a partner as well.  I said I would buy him a sandwich too.

On the way into the store she told me she was an alcoholic and I offered a suggestion about an nearby AA meeting.  She said she had been clean and sober for years but then had an injury in which she she was put on pain relievers and then turned back to alcohol.  I was compassionate and told her to return to AA if she could - she would find support there. 

She thanked me and seemed very grateful then looked straight at me and said she didn't need anything to eat, she just needed a dollar for a beer and understood that I probably didn't want to give her money for that.  I told her that I would much prefer to buy her food but would give her a few dollars for her to do with what she wanted.  She gave me a hug and told me that she knew I really cared and she was grateful for my realness and kindness with her.

I continued my shopping thinking about her and eventually got into the check out line behind a very thin, disheveled and elderly looking man.  I soon realized that there was a hold up in line because this gentleman's bank card kept being rejected so he kept having to take groceries away in order to decrease his total.  I noticed that the only food was a package of hotdogs, the rest was vitamins.  He was angry and couldn't seem to figure out why nothing was going through.  In the end, he was unable to buy anything and left the store visably upset and empty handed.  I felt unsure about what to do-not wanting to embarrass him more than he obviously already felt.

I quickly checked out and took out an extra $20 to give him if I could still catch him in the parking lot. I hurried out and found him in the middle of the lot looking confused.  I approached him and softly said I didn't know what happened in there but I wanted to give him this - I handed him a $20 note and a Smile Card.  He seemed dumbfounded and just stared.  I told him to have a pleasant night and left.

I felt blessed that I was able to touch and be touched by two people's lives that night.