The Kindness of Strangers

Perhaps you have heard about this happening lately.  It's so wonderful to hear about people being kind to other people, even when they don't know them at all.  We hear about it mostly around this time of year, but I know it happens at other times of the year as well.

I myself have been the recipient of kindnesses from people I don't know.  I can think of 3 separate times since Ruby was born that random people have done really nice things for me.  The first incident was maybe a month or two after she was born.  We had a baby dedication service at church, and there were two other couples with babies in addition to me and Ruby.  It was pretty obvious from my lack of a husband that I am a single mom.  A few weeks after that service, a woman I don't know came up to me at church (it's a big church, and I haven't been there long enough to know alot of people).  She asked if I were Kinsey, and said she wanted to give me something.  It was a gift certificate for an hour and a half long massage!  Who does that?  I was so moved by her kindness that I burst into tears.  She didn't know me, but she thought I could use something like that, and she was right!  I finally got that massage this week, and it was amazing!

The second incident was a little more simple, but touching nonetheless.  I went into Subway a few months ago to get a sandwich.  Of course I had Ruby with me; she was asleep in her carseat.  The man in front of me saw her and made some comment about how cute she was (which of course is a no brainer because she is uh-dor-a-ble!).  We only spoke for about a minute, and I jokingly told him not to wake her up.  He had his teenage son with him, and he mentioned that he remembered when his son was that young.  Anyway, I ordered my sandwich and when I went to pay for it, the clerk told me that the man in front of me had already paid for it.  He was gone before I could even thank him.

The last little story happened tonight (if you read my facebook status, you already know this story). Last Sunday night, I decided I wanted to do something nice for my neighbors.  There are 5 other apartments on my side of the building, but most of us rarely talk to each other.  Anyway, I made and decorated cookies and took a plate with a card to each of my neighbors.  They were grateful if a little surprised.  (Maybe I need to be a more intentional neighbor year round).  Today, one of my neighbors knocked on my door, and wanted to thank me again for the cookies and told me how good they were (store bought cookie dough!).  Then he made some comment about wanting to do something nice for me and handed me a $50 Walmart gift card!  Again, I cried.  His name is Jimmy.  Before giving him the cookies, probably the only word I ever said to him was "hi".  The only things I know about him are that he works for Pepsi (or at least he has alot of collared shirts that say Pepsi); he lives alone and mostly keeps to himself.  But what a wonderful thing for both of us to know the joy of giving.

This Christmas I hope that you have an opportunity to help out a stranger.  I recently saw a quote on Pintrest (my latest addiction/time sucker) attributed to Plato that said "Be kind for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle".  I think that is brilliant and so profound.  Everyone knows this time of year is hectic.  Maybe you like the hustle and bustle of the holidays, but I kind of dread going out and facing the crowds.  All I can think about are all the people who will just be in my way.  (I know, such a good example to Ruby).  I need to work on that.  It helps to think about other people who may need a helping hand.

I feel like I'm starting to ramble, but it's 1:30 am.   So I'll leave you with this: instead of getting caught up in all the things we get caught up in during this time of year -- worrying about gaining too much weight, getting the perfect gift, the "war on Christmas" -- do something nice for someone you don't know.  Or find someone you do know who might need your help and do it.  Be Jesus to someone this Christmas.

Merry Christmas!

This post brought to you by Mindy Smith's "My Holiday".