Stories of Kindness from Around the World

The Gift Of A Bathroom


--by rajaratnamjones, posted Jul 12, 2012

They were a family of nine; the father, mother, two boys, and five girls. The father worked as kitchen cleaner at a local school and the rest of the family help supplement his income by cleaning people's yards. They were a very poor family.

Then the father lost his job at the school!
 
He asked that I take him on to clean our yard. Realizing his situation, I offered him the job. He and his family came to our house three times a week to clean the yard. 
 
Early one morning the father suffered a stroke and died in the hospital. The poor family had lost their main bread-winner. The oldest boy had just completed school and was getting ready to go to college. The others were just little kids.
 
We stepped up and did all our best to help make sure the family got their education, and provided some daily needs, like clothes, and so on.
 
I visited this family once and came to understand that they did not have a toilet in their home. Imagine! A mother, a fifteen year old girl, and four smaller children without a toilet or bathroom! 
 
One of my friends came to my house and I told him I wanted to do something about this. He provided some money and, together, we built a bathroom and a toilet for this family. 
 
This random act of kindness brought a lot of smiles and happiness to the family.

 

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Readers Comments

heartwarmer wrote: That is so wonderful of you to help them live a more comfortable life and get an education for their daughter. Many blessings to you for your kindness!
Heavensto wrote: God bless you and your friend. We can all change this world one neighbor at a time.
starryskies wrote: Thank you for caring for others and sharing your blessings! You're a beautiful soul. :)
mati wrote: Awesome. May you find favour with god and people
madhur wrote: Wow, this is so good and inspiring.

I am sure they gave you many blessings.

cabbage wrote: That is huge! Wow. What an awesome gift you gave them. Thank you.
bubblehugfairy wrote: Thank you for giving such a wonderful gift to this family; hope. And yes, there are many many people who live in this country with no indoor bathroom or running water. Come out to appalachia and visit. These people may be monetarily poor, and also incredibly rich in their stories and in how they take care of each other! Thank you for the reminder to take care of each other.

Huuuuug
Shirley Marsh wrote: I cannot think of a better way of living in joy than to be able to help others in distress. It is so good to see there are so many other people out there who feel the same way.
patricia wrote: Yes, it's true some people in this rich country don't have bathrooms. In 1959 i married a young farm boy. We had no money and a baby was on the way (yes, that happens in this country). His folk were farmers and owned a very old, basic farmhouse. Electric in the kitchen and livingarea. But no running water and no bathroom. We did have an outhouse. We had two boy babies and a girl was on the way when a neighboring house went up for sale. Because he was a hard worker and had saved some money, we bought it. From famine to feast. It was beautiful! Custom kitchen and drapes and 2 fireplaces. The couple who lovingly had built it divorced. You never know what the future will bring.
Rajaratnam wrote: We are using this family to help us in the yard cleaning. The eldest boy just completed college and joined masters. The second daughter has completed high school and entered college first year. All the other five kids are in school. We paid all the fees for the girl who joined the college and provided all her sudden need of clothes etc. To go to a college. She helps my wife in cleaning the house also. Everyday we give her some pocket money and one meal a day. You will be surprised to know that this family lives in just two rooms! Anybody wish to see the photos of those two room email me. I will send the photos to you. Last month we gave some brand new clothes and some toys etc. To everyone in the family. Thus trying to keep them smiling.

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