
The gravity of a kind act is in the beholder.
Despite the constant barrage of horrifying incidents and hateful actions spewed by the media day in and day out, we must remember that there are some really wonderful people out here.
And they are building community with their neighbors all over the place.
Fortunately, for those kind strangers, a small selfless act isn't a big deal. They do it without thinking about it. Truly, they can't not do the morally good deed.
But when we are on the receiving end, that small moment of kindness can feel gigantic. Whether it's the timing or the tone, it really can feel like the most important event that could've happened.
Some Redditors gathered to describe the times they were blown away by a small good deed that came just at the right moment.
astridius asked, "What is the most selfless thing someone is unaware they did for you?"
Some people recalled the times when some stranger brought a sudden sense of serenity and composure following a scary accident.
Despite injury and destruction, these people maintained their calm, and even passed it along.
Still Selfless
"I was driving and hit another car. He was stopped to turn and I simply wasn't paying attention. I rear-ended his car at about 30 miles per hour. Set off my cars air bags. I managed to pull over to the side, he completed his turn. I was in shock and blundered right into the highway."
"He ran out, pulled me to safety and as I'm sobbing and apologizing, he just gave me a big hug and kept telling it's ok, we're ok, cars can be fixed. He was so sweet and calm when I was a complete mess."
"Found out from my co-worker a week later, the gentlemen I hit had lost his wife to cancer the week before."
"Just....wow."
Prioritizing the Right Things
"My daughter has a progressive neurological issue that is slowly taking away her right side. A few years ago, when she was 12 and could still ride a bike, we were riding to a place to watch fireworks on the 4th of July."
"She was struggling to ride and was somewhat unsteady and couldn't make quick moves. We weren't riding far. As she was riding by a new Mini Cooper, she was struggling to keep her bike straight and her handle bar hit the side view mirror of the guys Mini."
"He was in the car and and just smiled and waved us on saying everything was fine. I think he had a sense that my daughter had to work extra hard to ride her bike. After we moved out of the way, I went to thank the guy but he drove off."
"I know she broke the glass on his mirror, I heard it. I'll never forget the guys face and how compassionate and understanding he was."
-- macva99
The Right House To Crash In Front Of
"I once crashed while riding a very small bike down an incredibly steep hill. A very big, very steep hill. I got some gravel in my knee, and I just yelled 'FU**!' Over and over again."
"The people who lived in he house I had just crashed in front of came out and asked me if I was okay, I tried to tell them I was fine, it just hurt. So the wife that lived here says 'don't worry, I'm a nurse. I can get that gravel out for you.' And then she proceeds to pick out all of this gravel from my leg, bandage it, and tell me to be more careful."
"Lady if you're out there, never stop being this person. I think about you whenever I have a chance to help someone else out."
-- Garagairas
Other people provided an environment of supportive community at exactly the right time. From humans to animals, they were forces of good that interrupted a particularly dark time.
Another Way
"When i was in grade 3 my teacher invited me to have dinner with her and her family. My family life was not good. I never had a dad. My mom is an alcoholic (She has been sober now for 30 years)."
"I did not know what a normal family was like until that dinner and night at her house. It was just so calm and stable. I remembered that day like it was yesterday. It was almost 40 years ago. It made me realize that there was another way to exist."
-- Fiascoe
Cutting Through to the Humanity
"I have a genetic condition that makes me look rather awful. People are often uncomfortable around me. I get it, totally - but still, it hurts."
"One night, I was a church activity, and they told everyone that they could go target shooting (I know....weird). That's not my thing, and so I just stayed by the campfire. After everyone left, a girl stayed there with me and just talked."
"As we were talking, a few bugs came and landed on my face, and she brushed them away - like it was the most normal thing in the world. People never touch me at all - or at least not without fear."
"I know that is not really doing much - but I think that she must have gone through a lot in her life - in order to be around someone like me, and not be afraid."
"It's been years since that happened, and I still get that ache in the throat just thinking about it."
-- beyondwhatis
A Trusted Reprieve
"My friend's parents feeding me and letting me stay the night at their homes, even on school nights when sh** was getting crazy at my house."
"Maybe they were aware, but they never let me know."
-- [deleted]
The Family She Chose
"My mother in law's kindness and ability to be a mother figure and friend. My family is very fu**ed up and abused me, hence why my husband took me away from it and married me. Having a family that actually loves me means the world to me."
"He doesn't realize that having a mother that worries about him and loves him is something that he shouldn't take for granted."
-- MasterAqua2
A Caring Dog, a Patient Owner
"I was having a really bad depressive episode and this man and their dog were walking down the street. I was waiting for my food and considering just walking saying fuck it and walking down to one of the bridges on the river."
"The mans dog was walking with her leash dragging on the floor, and she came up to me and sat down on my feet and looked up at me and refused to move for about 5 minutes."
"I don't know if the man realized I needed this or what, but he didn't say or do anything as I stood there crying and petting his dog."
"When the dog decided she was done, she got up and they walked off and I never saw them again."
-- rizcriz
Perfect Timing
"When I was 20 I had to have major surgery and was facing a life with a chronic illness. When I was home recovering a friend came by and put me in her car and took me on a random drive down to the beach and just all over."
"It was so relaxing and healing for my mind. I'm a grandparent now and have had challenges but have been fine and I'll never forget what she did. Thank you Marie."
And some people recalled the people whose moment of selflessness was the spark that lead to a serious development in life. The moment itself may have seemed minor, but it was required for a much more significant snowball to begin rolling.
Igniting a Passion
"In 5th grade, we were forced to learn the plastic recorder. Our music teacher was nice and taught us the basics and like 3 or 4 notes. Since they were so cheap, he let all the students keep them at the end of the year"
"The teacher probably thought it was nothing and was probably just following orders, but unbeknownst to him, that changed my life. I was so happy to take it home and wanted to learn everything musically possible on this plastic instrument that probably only cost a few cents."
"I took band and orchestra the next year and kept picking up new instruments. So far, I've picked up about 8 instruments, with my current favorite being ukulele. I've also gotten into songwriting."
"I had no interest in music before the recorder, and though it's a squeaky, annoying instrument, I don't think I would've found my love of music without it. I still have the original recorder my teacher let me keep as a reminder, so thanks Teach."
-- PhotoSky2021
Passing On Memory
"After my kitten passed away at the end of August, I uploaded a video tribute to her. Some wonderful human being replied and told me they had a pregnant cat that looked just like her and that one of the kittens would be named in her honor."
"The person came back a couple months ago to leave another comment saying the kitten named after mine was alive and well."
"Honestly pulled me out of a deep pit of depression and self-loathing (I blamed myself for my kitten falling ill to begin with)."
"Ramieverse, if you ever see this, thank you so much. You need to tell me more about how Sabrina's doing and what she's like. ❤"
Showing Belief
"I had a professor in community college who encouraged me to continue my studies and was very complimentary of my work. I eventually transferred to a 4 year college and earned two graduate degrees."
"I went back years later to tell him of my success and thank him, but was greeted by his successor who told me the teacher died. I just broke down sobbing and left."
Close to Quitting
"One time I woke up late again for work, and on this day it was the straw I had been looking for. I decided to just quit my job. Texted my supervisor to say I was sorry for my record and that I was resigning."
"Supervisor showed the big boss. Big boss said no, I was too good of a worker to lose."
"He said if I came in the next day, he would move my shift to a more manageable time and keep me working. I was so caught off by this guy caring, and that I didn't even know knew my name, that I went in the next day and didn't follow through with my plans."
"Nowadays, I'm in a much better head space and am so thankful for him. He saved my life and he has no idea."
-- NoKnfePizza
It Only Took Two Words
"I was severely depressed at that time and I was sitting outside in the veranda on a bench when my 4 year old cousin came and stood on the bench and just hugged me."
"I asked her what are you doing and she replied, 'maya korchi' which means 'showing you love.' I still think about it when I am feeling down."
-- nerdywiz009
Saved More Lives Than One
"Someone donated their kidney when they died and they allowed me to be healthy enough to have and rise my son."
"He just turned 21."
Close Call
"after i was rescued from human trafficking i was in a safe house, one of the social workers when i moved out sent me a letter thanking me for being the reason she decided to pursue her career working with trafficking victims."
"She saved my life and has no idea."
A list like this is a good inspiration to think upon what we're grateful for. It can be helpful to comb through our past and recall the minor moments that turned out to be pretty huge.
Chances are, we all have a couple people like that.
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It's highly believed that it is important to learn history as a means to improve our future.
What is often overlooked is that what is taught in history class is going to be very different depending on where you went to school.
And this isn't just internationally, even different regions of the United states will likely have very different lessons on American history.
This frequently results in our learning fascinating, heartbreaking and horrifying historical facts which our middle or high school history teachers neglected to teach us.
Redditor Acherontia_atropos91 was curious to learn things people either wished they had learned, or believe they should have learned, in their school history class, leading them to ask:
What isn’t taught in history class but should be?
The Irish Troubles
"The troubles."
"Too many people in America do not understand why a wall straight through Ireland would be a BAD idea."
"I’m referring to the Brexit referendum and possible outcomes."
"If people were wondering why we were talking about walls through Ireland in the first place."- CLCVS.
Forgotten elements of World War II
"What the Japanese did to the Chinese during WW2."
"Unit 731."- CaptainMcBoogerJew.
"Japan gets off easy for their war crimes in WW2."
"They killed an estimated 16mil Chinese civilians and another 8mil soldiers"
"Also, Pol Pot."
"Didn't know who he was until I was like 25."
"Worst dictator all time (in terms of percentage of population he decimated)".
The truth about the American Revolution
"That the American Revolution was part of a wider cold war type of conflict with France."
"The American Revolution was basically the UK's equivalent of the US version of Vietnam."- vinsant7.
The Dark side of Swedish history.
"As a Swede, I'd like to know more of all the horrible sh*t my country has done throughout history."
"It's a damn shame we're trying to hide our history."
"For example, Swedes killed a metric sh*t ton of all Polish people when we were at our strongest."
"That's the kinda sh*t we don't get to learn."- mogwandayy.
Colonization
"Basically what Belgium did to the Congo."
"A lot of people are telling me that they are taught about this actually."
"I'm glad to hear it because I wasn't taught about this in the USA during my public school days (1995-2008)."- EconArch.
The truth about "heroes".
"While teaching about historical Heroes they should also tell students about the unspeakable things some of them did."
"Many famous figures throughout history who are pillars of morality actually did many terrible things." - User Deleted
Intolerance for Mental Illness
"The dark history of mental illness treatments."
"I think it's worth learning about."- 7dayexcerpt.
Slavic Mythology
"Slavic mythology in Slavic countries."
"Don't get me wrong, I love both Greek & Roman mythology and as a person from the Balkans both of those cultures are part of my country's history and had great influence over not only my region but the entirety of the continent & the western world but I wouldn't mind knowing more about Slavic mythology as well."- ShorsShezzarine.
The truth about the CIA
"How the CIA was made and all the shady things they did over the years."- ALargeChip.
There is a lot about the history of our world, not to mention our own country which shouldn't be ignored.
And it's from learning from our mistakes that we really improve our future.
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So apparently we are in the endemic phase of this nonsense.
We have light at the end of the tunnel.
So what now?
Where do we go from here?
Normal seems like an outdated word.
How do we get back to normal though?
Is it even possible?
What are reaching back to?
Life pre-Covid.
Those were the days.
If only we could bring them back.
Redditor hetravelingsong wanted to discuss our new normal in this hopeful "endemic" phase. So they asked:
"What’s something random you miss about pre-COVID times?"
I miss people being sane. Though that maybe election cycle issues not COVID. We'll never know.
I thought I was Alone...
"Being able to grocery shop after 11 pm."
Reading_Rainboner
"Hell yes. I miss the days where the Walmart across the street was open 24 hours."
Small_Tax_9432
let's just go...
"I miss spontaneity... everything now seems to have a barrier of difficulty."
iidosee
"I live very close to Disneyland so I have an annual pass. My friends and I would just go there after work and hang out and grab a bite to eat."
"Now, we have to reserve a day to go. And most of the time, the days are at 'full' capacity so we couldn't even reserve. I don't want to schedule to hang out at Disneyland for a couple hours for July. So yeah, I definitely miss the 'lets go eat at Disneyland tonight?' texts."
mymymissmai
Not til 24-25
"Functioning global supply chains. Ah, the product you want has got microchips in it? 9 month wait."
richard-king
"Minimum, I'd been saying for a while now that I wouldn't expect a true return to normalcy in terms of electronics prices till 2024-2025. Although Crypto crashing through the floor really took some of the pressure off graphics cards which I really appreciate."
statiiic
WTF?!?!
"How affordable everything was!"
Disastrous_Hour_6776
"Yep. Today I was bagging up my things at the grocery store and I heard the cashier say to the lady behind me 'thats $78.12.' She had -- 2 boxes of Kellogg's corn flakes, a carton of 12 eggs, milk, strawberries, raspberries, blue berries, a small cheese cake, English muffins, coffee, and a small whole frozen chicken that could maybe feed 3 people if the meat portioning was small."
SnowyInuk
Sushi
"My favorite sushi place. It was good quality, close by, kid-friendly, and not too expensive."
InannasPocket
All of this... it was a simpler time.
NASTY
"As a retail worker, just how f**king NASTY some people have gotten."
DmitriPetrov*itch
"They applauded you for being an essential worker but won’t vote for policies that’ll raise minimum wage while insisting a wage cap for heavily paid employees."
sketchysketchist
CHANGES your DNA...
"Some of the people closest to me became very bitter and petty over the last 2 years. So many people have the 'crazy eyes' now."
__--__7
"So true and holidays with the family is like who has the biggest tinfoil hat building contest. How many jumps does your brain have to go through to think that the Covid vaccine CHANGES your DNA into the patented DNA so that the government now controls your body."
"So like vaccinated people now have a singular DNA set. I feel like I still have a chunk of my brain just broken off due to that comment alone. I was also told by same family member that I could never donate blood again due to the vaccine. I guess it is so my patented DNA doesn't affect people?? FYI my vaccinated butt just donated today fine and multiple other times after the vaccine."
tyreka13
Homeward Bound
"House prices."
adrianinked
"I'm resigned to never thinking I have a chance on owning property where I live. I'm 30 and just can't imagine it anymore. And I don't want to live anywhere else so, whatever."
Osdab2daf
"That didn’t happen because of the pandemic. That was already happening regardless."
CH11DW
Oh Mickey
"All Day Breakfast at McDonalds."
hutch2522
"It was honestly hell to do, and not very popular. ITs margins aren't anywhere dinner and lunch specials. ON top of that, the temperatures are such that They require its own grill, meaning that if you have 2 grills in shop, you are down 50% of lunch capacity."
Freyas_Follower
Way back when...
"Hanging out with friends. And I mean waaaaaay before Covid. Like 2006 back when I had some friends."
LoocsinatasYT
I miss the old days. Maybe we'll get back there.
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What do you believe?
Is there a GOD in the sky?
Is he guiding us and helping us?
Life is really hard. Why is that is a big entity is up there loving us?
Atheists have taken a lot of heat for what feels like shunning GOD.
What if they've been right all along?
Maybe let's take a listen and see what they really think.
Redditor __Jacob______ wanted to hear from the people who don't really believe all that "God" stuff. They asked:
"Atheists, what do you believe in?"
I'm waffling between G-O-D and nothing. So please give me some education.
911
"We need to look out for each other because help isn't coming."
cknipe
Peace Out
"More than 2 decades ago, a priest was giving a sermon in my church and he said 'our faith requires you to believe without question. Why call it faith if you have to ask questions?' I haven't returned to church. Not until my wedding day but you know what I mean."
asiangontear
Delusion
"When I was young I used to think that after death you would have access to a PC that you could see absolutely anything about your life. Stats, any question you had no matter how obscure, replays of moments, perspectives of others in relation to you. No matter what you wanted to know, if it was relatable to you, you could see it. I know it's silly, but as time goes on I just want it to be real, and I don't think I'd have any issue allowing myself to fall into that delusion."
eggwardpenisglands
I think nothing happens...
"Realistically, I think nothing happens. We literally experience nothing after death. Same thing that we experience before birth. We don't exist, so it's nothing. I think the tenant that we should follow while living is to try to be happy and healthy while minimizing the damage we do to each other."
"What I would LIKE to happen after death is whatever you believe in, exists. I think Christians should get to go to heaven if they truly believe in it, Hindus and Buddhists get reincarnated, and everyone else also gets to experience what they believe they will experience."
"'I would still experience Nothing. Maybe it's one of those things where at the moment of death their brain makes them experience what feels like an infinitely long moment in time where they experience their afterlife. I just think it would be neat for everybody."
Better_Meat_
Shrug
"Best advice I received from a dear senior on their way out. 'You win some, you lose some' shrug. Nothing divine, life is that simple and wonderful, accept it and move on."
Tune_Kindly
It all sounds pretty simple. Why are people so up in arms about Atheists?
Whatever
"I believe in a universe that doesn't care, and people that do."
imCIK
Cool with Empty
"Nothing. [Serious]."
rumblingtummy29
"I feel this way about death. When I was 5, my grandfather died and my cousin simple said, he is dead, that means you are gone forever. Everything ends up dying, even plants and animals. I'm now in my 40's and still have this simplistic view of life and death. People think I'm ambivalent to life and death but it's just what it is."
thepigfish82
puppet-masters...
"I think a lot of religious people struggle with the fact that we are all just swirling units of chaos. There is no grand plan or great orchestrator. I think that’s why people who are prone to religion are also susceptible to things like Q anon and the Cabal and all that. They REALLY want to believe that there is some almighty puppet-master who determines all of humanity’s fate."
Lngtmelrker
“we’re living in a society!”
"Just be a kind and empathetic person not because you’re worried about some cosmic justice, but because it’s the right thing to do. If there is some being that created us there’s no way they actually care about believing in it or adhering to some rules from over 2000 years ago."
"Also a big thing for me is that I find the idea that you need religion or the Bible in order to have morals and ethics pretty dumb. It’s pretty f**king clear that most evangelicals have neither. But my main thing is being a good person simply because, as George Costanza once said we’re living in a society!' If you’re only a good person in order to make it to heaven you probably aren’t actually a good and moral person."
conservative_genius
That's All
"You're born. You live. You die. That's it. After you die you cease to exist, the same as before you were born."
serefina
Believe what you want. We're all here together. So let's focus there.
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The list of what irritates me is endless.
I mean... breathing too loud or dust can set me off.
I'm a bit unstable, yes.
But I'm not alone.
So let's discuss.
Redditor Aburntbagel6 wanted to hear about all the times many of us just couldn't control our disdain. They asked:
"What never fails to piss you off?"
I feel like this article can go on forever. Let's get some highlights.
Wasted Time
"Meetings that could and should have been an email."
Sirena609
Lotto People
"Getting stuck behind people playing the lottery at a corner store."
thenuggetlover
"I also used to work in a gas station and you’re SO right. I f**king hated the lottery people. Especially since my store had a small staff and there was usually only one of us working at a time, which meant that I couldn’t get any of my other work done as long as they were there."
"And you’re right, it’s also pretty sad to watch. I had one lady who used to come in every day and spent hundreds and HUNDREDS of dollars on scratch tickets. One day, she won $200 after spending probably around $600 and she was so excited and saying she can 'finally pay her bills.'"
i-am-your-god-now
Aware...
"No situational awareness. Job, home, shopping, driving. Think for one minute and go about. OBSERVE!!"
Dizzy-Foundation8122
"My mom is one of those people who leave the shopping cart in the middle of the damn aisle and proceed to walk twenty feet away. After correcting her a million times to no effect I just walk away now so people don’t know I’m with her."
OutrageousEvent
Shut Up!
"Endless barking in the middle of the night, I love animals but that sh*t I can't stand."
Acceptable-Lemon2924
"Endless barking in general drives me up a wall. One of my friends dogs was barking almost an entire gaming session the other day. I wanted to reach through the computer and smack him for letting it go on."
bangersnmash13
Kindness
"People being mean to service workers, especially if the workers are very young."'
scaryboilednoodles
All of these things. I hate them all.
Admit It
"People who never accept fault when they mess something up. Like, why blame a million people when it was clearly you who did it???"
Quirky-Area-8978
From Above
"My upstairs neighbors."
lutzow89
"I had terrible neighbors at my previous apartment. It was a one person studio for students, but her boyfriend was clearly living with her illegally and he was loud."
"One night we knocked n the door at 3 AM because of the loud music and an unknown girl opened the door. I just thought they were having a little party. But the next door I saw the girl living there come home with a suitcase after having been away for the weekend... Her BF was cheating on her in her own apartment."
Th3_Accountant
Move Away
"People who sit directly next to me at the airport, movie theater, any other place where you can choose a seat when there is PLENTY of other seating."
BacardiPardy33
"I can’t YES this enough and the ones who can’t park for crap so they park so close you can’t open doors on one side of the car or the ones who park directly behind when you pulled through so the door won’t open to load groceries."
BacardiPardy33
It's Over
"People who try to restart old drama. Like I'm done with you, just leave me alone."
Tired_Potatos
"Yep, half the reason I've basically quit playing one of my favorite online video games. People keep bringing old crap up or sh*tting on on someone who used to be our friend. I got tired of it so I just ejected the game out of me."
CaucasianHumus
AHHHHH!!!
"People walking too slow in front of me with no way to get around them. It’s even worse if it’s a couple or group taking up the whole sidewalk. HAVE SOME SPATIAL AWARENESS FOR THE LOVE OF GOD!!"
_-v0x-_
Life in general pisses me off. I'm easy.
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