Into Action....
Dick Wolf Doctor GIF by Wolf EntertainmentGiphyWhen I was 14 I saved a mentally ill man's life on the bus while going to school. Apparently he was 45 years old but he had the mind of a 5 year old.
Anyway, we were on the bus and it stopped unexpectedly and he hit his head on a the corner of a step. I immediately jumped to him as the blood was gushing from his head and he was screaming.
I applied pressure on his with with my t-shirt while I told another passenger to call an ambulance. I held his head on my lap while trying to comfort him. I remember his fearful eyes to this day. He was so scared, just like a child.
Luckily the hospital wasn't that far from where we were and they saved him.
The Exchange
One thing that comes to mind is something I did for an exchange student at my college. I was a freshman or sophomore, but it was the day of graduation for seniors. This student had their sister and mother come to our Midwest town to see the ceremony. The student had lived in the dorms (like I did. Most exchange students do that even if they are older) so he wanted to bring his family to eat at the dining hall to show them where he had been eating the semester/year.
They were denied entry for silly reasons that the dining center has which, basically, sums up to you have to go to our student union to pay for meals ahead of time and you cannot just pay cash. The language barrier was present and it was more complicated by the fact the worker was saying things like "you normally could pay through the student union" except now they couldn't because it was the last day everything was open. Anyway, I had guest meals left over and I used them on the family. They were very kind, introduced themselves, and thanked me profusely.
I felt really good about it and ever since then I have tried to do kind things for people. First it started to show people that people from the US aren't a**holes, but then I realized we all have so much kindness to give. I always hate saying good things I do because I never want to seem like I'm tooting my own horn or whatever, but the anonymity of the Internet is helpful and I love reading everyone else's responses.
The Wanderer
A distant neighbor suffers from dementia. Was walking my dog near midnight and met him walking down the middle of the road. Asked if he was ok and he said he didn't know where he was. Told him and he said I live there. Escorted him home to find his front door wide open. Had a quick check to make sure it was ok and got him to lock the door when I left. Passed info onto the carers to be told his family know he wanders. Crazy.
Pay it Forward
Drive Through Music Video GIF by HansonGiphyI love to pay for the car behind me at drive-thru's.
Then they order 1000 chicken nuggets.
The Cougars....
I had a customer that would call Tech Support just to talk to me. She was an older lady and obviously lonely. She would have me setup her remote control or something random just to keep me on the phone. We were timed on our calls, so I would all her back over and over so that it didn't mess up my call time or my coworkers.
At another job I had, Mrs. Penny would come play the slots. After getting her change one day, she started waving me down when she was there, and would tell me that the machines next to her were too dirty to play and that they needed cleaning. We would sit there talking while she played and I 'cleaned' machines for her. She would also slip me a $10 or something, pinching my butt while sticking the bill in my pocket. She was a really sweet old lady with some crazy stories about her life.
When in Vegas....
Once in while in Vegas, I was down in the dungeon arcade at the Excalibur. I won something like 50K tickets on a Monopoly game. I was giving away stacks of them to every little kid who walked by. Not life changing, perhaps, but the kids were all pretty happy about it.
Being Spared.
A single mom I didn't know was locked out of her apartment by accident--and she didn't have her phone with her. So, I let her use my phone to try to contact our rental management company. After unsuccessfully trying to contact the management company, I then drove her to the management company's office, waited while she got a spare key, and they drove her back to the apartment complex.
Reaching....
season 1 books GIF by PortlandiaGiphyProbably pales in comparison to some here but nothing makes me feel warm and fuzzy inside like getting something from a high shelf for an elderly shopper.
Snowflakes
Not me, but rather something a stranger did for me. last year I was snowkiting (like kiteboarding but instead of water it's a frozen lake) with my father. in the afternoon I went in for lunch but my dad stayed out. after about only 10 minutes or so I look out at the lake and can't see my dad. After calling him multiple times he called me and told me he had crashed really bad about 2 kilometers off the shore. I couldn't run out there in time so I went up to some random guy with a snowmobile and asked him if he could drive me out.
He did and got to my dad first and started asking him a bunch of questions about his pain and his arm. I soon learned he was a local fireman and knew how to make my dad as comfortable as possible. he took my dad and me back. My father had a severely dislocated and broken shoulder as well as multiple arm breaks. without that random guy that would have been a much worse day.
Push
Art Helping GIF by Libby VanderPloegGiphyI helped a woman who had a broken leg and crutches she was trying to push her shopping cart back to her car and was having difficulties so I pushed her cart for her plus I helped stabilize a girl who had a seizure on the bus I have epilepsy so I knew what was happening.
Miss Laney....
cat GIF by sheepfilmsGiphyShe'll never know what I did, but:
When Miss Laney, our elderly neighbor across the street from where I grew up died, I found a loving home for her beloved black & white cat, Tompkins. (I think I was nearly as fond of that cat as she was.)
Tompkins was her sole companion. So it was especially urgent to provide for him, knowing how important he was to Miss Laney.
A Place to Cry.
Got a hotel room for a lady and her kid that I came across at a gas station. The cops were there and a tow truck, apparently they'd been sleeping in the car in the parking lot and the owners wanted them gone, but the lady was crying saying they had nowhere else to go, it was her and a little toddler. I got her a reservation at a cheap hotel close by for a couple nights, I was a broke teenager at the time so I couldn't give any more than that.
dog by his side the whole time.....
There was a local homeless man and his dog that used to walk by my job. Every so often I'd stop and give him a ride to the store/gas station. While talking to him I found out he was a veteran and he couldn't get his vet benefits due to his homelessness. So I set up a tent in the yard and helped him file for his benefits and he used my address.
He lived in that tent with his dog for 4 weeks then after he got his check we found him a small home to rent and I bought him all the stuff he needed for his kitchen,bath,bedroom etc. He lived there for 3 months before his mental health issues kicked in and he went back to living on the streets.... dog by his side the whole time.
Older Kids.
today hugs GIFGiphyAdult adoption. She woke up from a coma at 25 with no family and the mind of an 8 year old. My daughter now and doing well. Working on statistics and world history now. I have hopes for her to go to a good college in a few years. She smiles often is kind to elders and children has a love for electronic repair.
Scared of fireworks and groups of people but these things take time. Likely some latent PTSD but I'm not so want to diagnose anything. Time can heal a lot of wounds. Just came back from a shopping spree mooning over a stack of dresses right now.
$500
I was standing in line at the grocer's customer service desk behind a young man. He was turning in $100 that he had just found. Someone had left the money in the automated checkout machine after getting cash back, but they must have forgotten it. I heard him saying he could really use the money at the moment, but if he had forgotten that kind of cash he hoped someone would also turn it in.
I skipped going up to the customer service desk and followed the kid out to the car park, praised him for his honesty and gave him $500 because I could afford it. I've never before or since witnessed that level of honesty from someone who clearly needed even that small sum, so it was worth doing.
breaking bread....
I had dinner with a homeless man.
This was when I was a broke college student. While sitting at the laundromat a guy came in and tried to sell each person this kind of strange red jacket. He wasn't pushy, just offered, was told no thanks, and went on to the next person. After running out people he sat down quietly in the corner, it was cold and rainy outside so I think he just wanted to warm up.
I was wrapping up my laundry so as I headed out I asked if he needed something to eat. He was a bit reluctant but admitted he hadn't had much to eat that day.
I hadn't had dinner so I asked if he wanted to get a burger. We went to a Burger King, I paid for the meals and spent a half hour talking, mostly about nothing in particular.
He appreciated the food, but he seemed pretty surprised that I sat down to eat with him. People had given him some things but I don't think anyone really spoke with him much. Maybe it gave him a little bit of dignity he didn't normally get.
The Tab.
Worked in a restaurant and had a table that ran their tab up to $250. In the US, 20% is typically what happy customers tip if their overall experience was enjoyable. These folks left cash on the table and took off. When I opened the check presenter I realized they left $400 composed of 4 x $100 bills, all new bills kinda stuck together.
Figured they only meant to leave $300 so I ran out and found them, informed them of their error, gave em back $100 and thanks them for their tip.
They came back the next day to sit in my section and tipped me 20% which I took as their way of saying thanks.
All the Way there....
driving jon hamm GIFGiphyNot quite a stranger, but very close.
I had a co-worker who I didn't really know at all, but one day he was really upset because his mother was in the hospital and probably dying and he had no way to get to her in time. So I drove him 800 miles each way.
Pass Along.
I pass musical instruments on to kids who want to learn. I play several different things professionally, so frequently when I upgrade I need to clear some space. Rather than selling the old model, I try to pair it up with a kid who wants to learn. It's so much easier to learn on a real instrument than the dreck that is marketed toward beginners and parents.
And now I've made it such a part of what I do, I actually get donations from people of instruments they no longer play. It's sort of become a thing.
Basics.
unh hug GIF by University of New HampshireGiphyA few years back, when I was a student, I was behind someone in a queue for the checkouts. They had some basic groceries, nothing fancy. Their card got declined and they tried another but it didn't work. They had to take a few things out of their shopping to afford it.
The awkwardness was tangible in the air and I felt bad someone couldn't afford the basics so I tapped my card on the reader. I think I only had about £50 left for a month myself so I had hesitated at first but I knew I'd get by. People made a big deal about how generous and kind an act it was which was quite embarrassing to be honest.
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