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Friday, September 24, 2010

Tell Me You Would Have Helped!

With my 4-year-old daughter back at preschool, I've finally been able to start walking the harbour-front boardwalk in our small hick town.

So the other day, I had about one block left to walk when I spotted a woman with two suitcases on the street talking to another woman.  They were looking at a brochure together.  Being the nosy thing I am, I stopped to ask if they were lost.

The older woman told me the lady with the suitcases was looking for a particular street.  The name of the street sounded familiar to me but I wasn't sure where it was.  In the best English she could, the younger woman told me she had just arrived in town and had become lost after getting off the bus from the airport. She thought the bus driver had said a 10-minute walk to the street she was looking for but she didn't know in which direction.  She had been walking in circles for almost an hour.

Well, it didn't matter how many crime shows I had watched on TV or seen on the news, there was no way I was going to walk away and leave this woman stranded only a block from my house lugging two suitcases.  The neighbors must have thought I was nuts watching me mime out that she could come with me and we would find out where the street was and I would drive her there.

So here's what I was able to find out during our short walk to my home.  She was here to run in a charity event that was taking place in a few days, she had flown all the way from Japan to participate and was able to joke with me that she should have taken a taxi from the airport instead of the bus.

Within a few minutes, we were at my house, she showed me the address of the B&B she had reserved and we jumped in the truck to find it.  Within five minutes, we were pulling up to the front door of the B&B.

So with just a little extra effort on my part that took less than 10 minutes of my time, she was safe and secure in the room she had reserved and able to enjoy the balance of her stay here.

Random Act of Kindness, Check!

What random act or acts of kindness have you done?

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27 comments:

EnVii said...

That was very nice of you to do! i havent dont any random act of kindness as of lately since im always stuck home with the kids..

~Shari said...

People really don't do random acts of kindness any more! :(

I am glad you took the time to help her out. I woulda done the same thing. :)

Happy Week end darlin'!

Kirs said...

What a great story! I'm a new reader, and follower! Just found you through Frugal Free Gal's blog hop.

It is so nice to hear things like this. So many people are afraid to help a stranger these days.

Good for you! I bet you made the woman's day and most importantly she is safe.

http://ninasmomma.blogspot.com

~Kirs

Buckeroomama said...

You just made two people feel good --the person you helped... and yourself! And it didn't take much.

Bless your heart. :)

Sam said...

Aww! This post made me smile. Good for you! :) And good for her, coming all the way here for a charity event. :)

Simply Suthern said...

What was little effort to you made a big difference to her. Thats who you are. We wouldnt expect any different from you.

My car broke down on the highway a few miles from work. A truck driver stopped, picked me up and turned his big rig around and took me back to work where I could get tools to fix it. It was way out of his way. You never forget that effort. I had always been involved in the fire dept and rescue squad to be involved in the community. I think what goes around comes around.

Susan said...

After watching ALL the scary stories on the tube I am afraid to do anything like this...with that said, I am so glad you helped her! That was awesome!!

Margaret (Peggy or Peg too) said...

I love you! That was great and sadly it is now considered rare.

i would have done it and then my husband would have asked if I were nuts?

Yep, kindness and nuts thats me.

Thanks for keeping my faith in humans alive.....

Ocean Breezes and Country Sneezes said...

How nice of you! Just think of the lovely impression you made on that woman about your country! As for my own RAK - well it's loose at best. I didn't send a H.S. Sr. to the office for dropping the "F-Bomb," he didn't know I was in the room and he offered a sincere apology! He was pleased - LOL!

Audrey Spence said...

Isn't it great when opportunities like that come our way? It really makes a person feel good. I came out of costco one day and the lady parked next to me needed a jump. Her car battery died. We found out she had been in the er all night with her boy and had run in for 5 minutes to get a prescription for him and her car battery died in that short time. There was another time I was out walking in the summer heat and the big street by me does not have a sidewalk so I was walking in the street pushing my daughter in her stroller and a lady pulled over to see if I needed a ride. A total stranger I don't even know! How nice is she! I declined since we were only 10-15 min away but thank goodness for people like her and you always willing to offer a hand when necessary!

Anonymous said...

That was great of you to help her! I always try to help people out. Mine is usually less noble, I get asked where things are in a store (I don't know why people think that since I'm not wearing the employee uniform!) and even though I tell people I don't work there, I help them find what they want anyway :-)

Anonymous said...

Thats such a great thoughful thing of you to do. If I still lived in California I might have done the same thing, here in Vegas is another story. Every person I have tried to help here has burnt me....no one in need in Vegas is sincere unfortunately, but my eyes and heart are still always open!

Unknown said...

I don't get much chance to help anyone in need being that I'm pretty much at home with my kids 24/7. My husband, on the other hand, is wonderful about it. Just a few weeks ago a lady on the highway in front of him suddenly had car problems and pulled over. He pulled over behind her to see if he could help and then stayed with her until a tow truck came. He makes me so proud sometimes.

Unknown said...

twenty five days before I turned 50 I did 50 Random acts of kindness...to help ease the burden of the big day! My favorite was paying for the person behind me in McDonalds drive thru lane. It was fun!

Unknown said...

That's the sweetest story! You know, if she would've looked like she was strung out on drugs or dangerous, I think it probably would've been a different story for me but you did exactly what I would've done.

naomi said...

Hi I am your newest follower from Friday Blog Hop. Come on by and don't forget to follow back :)

Naomi
Na-Miart.blogspot.com

Rachel said...

Thank you for doing that. If more people just took a few minutes out of their day for strangers, this world would be a much, much better place.

StarTraci said...

I have never shared this story before (partly because my military husband would probably lecture me for hours on the thousand reasons why this was not the safe choice) but I will here. I used to live in Houston and some of you may know that we received many of those displaced from their homes after Katrina.

I was in our local Wal-Mart trying to grab some milk on the way home from work. I had finished my shopping and was headed towards my car when I noticed a woman in her late sixties standing with a cart full of groceries. She looked lost and tired. And then it started to rain. As I passed her she called out to me. Could I help her? She had called a car service but no one had arrived (taxis are rare commodities in the Houston area -- only seen at the airport and downtown at 2:00 am). Could I help her get home?

I agreed and helped her load her belongings. On the drive, she told me how she had lost everything in the storm, was away from family, and in a city that she had never been. After we got her home, she actually offered me money which shocked me. I declined, of course. The look on her face was more than payment enough. Whether she made it back to NOLA or is still in Houston, I hope that she is well.

Jackee said...

You're a good person! I would have done the same thing.

Last year a friend and I went to a jazz bar in Detroit and a bunch of us New Kids on the Block fans were meeting the group's band there to listen to them play. At about 2 am, the club was shutting down and one of the girls who had driven in from Toronto was getting ready to walk several blocks by herself to find her car. She couldn't remember where she parked.

I wouldn't let her leave. I told her to jump into my car and my friend and I would help her find her car.

She was very appreciative and we ended up finding her car several blocks away from the club.

I couldn't leave the club knowing that this girl was going to be walking alone in the middle of the night in one of the most dangerous cities in the country. NO way!!

I saw her the next day at the New Kids on the Block show and she remembered me and told everyone that I saved her life! Who knows?

Tammy said...

I think you did the right thing! So sweet of you. Awhile back there was an elderly couple looking for some apartments and they had no idea how to get there. I gave them directions in the store. When I came out to my car, they were still trying to figure out where to go. I told them to follow me to their destination. I felt good about doing that!

Debby said...

Reading your blog is great. I am a new follower from the hop. Please follow back at deal-liciousdebby.blogpost.com

Patricia said...

Aww that was kind... I dont think I have done anything as nice as you..

April Yedinak said...

I think you did the right thing. I was appalled at the behavior of other adults recently. A man in a motorized wheel chair with a lap full of items was crossing a street downtown. His chair got stuck on the curb as he tried to move from the street to the sidewalk. People were walking by and there were dozens of cars waiting at the 4 way intersection. The man in the wheelchair was halfway in the lane and becoming panicked as cars began to swerve around him to pass. I was so upset. I blocked traffic on the street I was on, jumped out and helped him in less time than it took for the light to change. I recall looking into the faces of the men in the cars and on the street afterward and as a single mom that dates, I thought, not a single one of them better ever approach me!!

Linda Medrano said...

Good for you Deb! I phoned my husband who was at work to tell him that I met a young Indian guy on the train and I was bringing him home with me to stay for a few days. The guy was in town for a Microsoft conference and asked me to recommend a reasonably priced hotel in SF for him. There really aren't any, but my house is the right price! Free! Alex thought it was hilarious that I would bring a total stranger home but he was a cool guy! We really enjoyed his visit and we still exchange emails.

Venom said...

A woman with suitcases, broad daylight...
Yeah, I'd have done the exact same thing. Way to go Debbie!

SuziCate said...

It's so hard to know when to trust or not, and usually instinct tells us. That was a very kind thing you did. I always like to think when I take a chance that if I was in need a nice and honest person would help me as well.

gayle said...

That's so sweet of you!! I haven't done anything lately. I need to start!!