Random Acts of Kindness

GBE topic #48

I thought this week's topic was kinda fun so I figured I would give it a whirl.

"Treat others as you want to be treated"

"Giving is better than receiving"

"Waste not, want not"

These are all phrases we have heard time and time again as our society strives to be giving towards the less fortunate, disabled, elderly, or just unlucky people. I try to practice "Random Acts of Kindness" as often as I can, but I often find that my perception of others hinders my giving ability.

For example, stopping to help someone on the side of the road, I would never do.

1. I am a girl and I am weak.

2. I know NOTHING about cars.

3. How do I know this person is not a serial killer, a rapist or a thief?

Now, I know that is not a great way to think, but in the world these days you can never be too careful.

Another example... if someone comes to my door and I look out the peephole and it is someone I do not know and is not wearing a UPS, Police Department, or or apartment maintenance uniform (or other recognizable uniform), I usually don't answer the door. Do they need help? Maybe, but I am too chicken to open the door and find out. Is this a logical way to be? No, but it kinda scares me and people can get into your house that way.

Now, with that said, I am lot braver and more giving in these types of situations if Jared is there. I remember January 2007, Jared and I were heading back to Pitt from Wichita in a HUGE snow storm. He was driving and I was tensing and closing my eyes every 5 seconds. I was scared. Jared, however, maintained his cool and kept the car on the road. We were about 20 miles west of Fort Scott when we see an older woman on the side of the road trying to shovel her SUV out of the snow to get back up to the road. Cars were wizzing by and no one was stopping. Jared pulls over to the side of the road and says, "I know you wanna get home, but this poor woman needs some help and no one else is stopping". I agreed that she did need help. So, Jared tried and tried to get her SUV back up out of the ditch and onto the road and each time it got harder and harder. Eventually, he gave up (fearing he would tip the truck over) and told her to call a tow truck. She approached our vehicle and sat in the drivers seat to make the call. I did feel bad for her, she was an older woman, but I was still a little leery of a strange woman sitting in the car with me. She was pleasant and thanked us profusely, and I know if that would have been me, I would have been grateful that someone was there to help me too.

Jared helps a lot of people in situations like this. I can't even begin to tell you the number of times we have jumped random cars for people, of helped people change their tires.

My acts of kindness come in other ways than the emergency car repair arena. I try to send random e-mails or cards to friends once in a while just to tell them hi and that I hope they have a great day. I always hold doors open for people and I have been known to help the elderly load groceries into their cars at the grocery store or help them get something off the top shelf. I rarely give money to beggars on the street, but will often give money at the grocery store for the various fundraisers that may be going on. I always wave to road construction workers when they wave me through the orange cones and I smile at people in passing.

They are pretty simple things, but I like to think they make a difference in someone's life. It is hard to get passed those perceptions sometimes, but I try to focus on little things. I'll leave the big ones to Jared :)