Wednesday, February 15, 2006

Random Acts of Kindness


In this oft-corrupt world, I think about how selfish and self absorbed people can be. Violent, even. But many times you can believe that there are Angels that step in and intercede for us, helping and guiding us.

I have been helped on at least three occasions by Angels right here on earth. Random acts of kindness, (which, if you really think about it, are not so random), where, by grace, I was assisted and helped, and as a result, significantly altered the course of my day, and or immediate future. But before I do, I just want to let the blog community know that this was a LONG TIME AGO, I don't want y'all to think I have this much drama going on now. 1994-1995 was a very trying time for me. With that said, three angels that immediately come to mind (two in one day!), are:

Angel One

During my 'right after college', no money, getting laid off here and there life (10 years or so ago), I had headed to Lynwood, California, to pick up some information from a friend. Getting off the freeway, my car started sputtering. I had been having some car problems lately, but considering the fact that both myself and my mother had been laid off, and then had just had our jobs reinstated, money was VERY tight. So, I coasted as far as I could, turned off a side street, and landed in front of a house. This was pre-cell phone era, so I had to find a phone booth to walk to, to call someone to help out. Normally, I keep a AAA club card at the ready, but, due to $$$ issues, it had lapsed. I had NO IDEA how I was going to get this car back home. It was the summertime, and outside it was hotter than a hooker in church. Before I made the trek to the phone booth, I knocked on the door of the house that it had coasted under, to tell the tenant what had happened, and to let her know I will have the car picked up as soon as possible. She asked me to come in, gave me a glass of lemonade, and not only let me use her phone, but insisted I use her AAA card to get the car home. I tried to pay her (with what little I had), but she refused. While looking around her house, I noticed the pictures of her children. Her son (and my first child crush) was my fourth grade baseball coach! How cool was that! I got her address and sent her a thank you card in the mail. What are the odds of me coasting right in front of her house, on that street, and the car petering out right there. There were no odds, because now, I know, that my God and the Angels, guided that car, not me. Thank you, Mrs. Dorsey.

Angel Two

After I (finally) got the car home, I was talking on the phone with a girlfriend of mines, I had helped her out a time or two when she was going through a rough time. Nothing major, forty bucks here and there. She never asked, I just did it because I saw a need and because I loved her so. I was expressing to her how frustrating is was with all the drama going on with my car. At that time, we had been friends for about seven years and talked daily. She had had a rough life but things were turning around for her. She started asking some pointed questions, such as "What's wrong with the car?" (I don't know, L), "Weren't you planning on getting another one?" (Yes, but I don't have enough down). I'm not really one to put my personal drama out in the streets, and was kind of uncomfortable answering all her questions, but I knew she meant well and was concerned. After talking to me for awhile, she told me she would call me back later. She called back about 1/2 and hour later and told me that there was $1000.00 waiting for me at Western Union, and to do what I wanted with it. I think this is worth repeating: She told me that there was $1000.00 waiting for me at Western Union and to do what I had wanted with it. No questions asked. I was able to put down on another car, trade in that one, and had a few $$ to boot. Her only request was that I never bring it up again, and it was because she loved me. Okay, I'm getting emotional thinking about it now, so on to other news.

Angel Three

I (near around that time) like to pride myself on my hair, nails, feet, etc. But during that time, I had to let a lot go. Hair was pulled back, nails were ragged (which I took off, yes I wear acrylic French manicure, so NOW!). When I finally did go back, I had to decide: Nails, or feet? Considering I always wore sandals, I didn't want to look like I had been kicking rocks and dirt, so I decided on the feet. When I went, the owner hugged me and told me she had missed me coming in (it had been about six weeks). She asked was I getting the whole treatment, and I said "Nah, just the feet". She looked at me but didn't say anything. While the pedicurist was hooking me up, the owner was looking at me. I tried to turn from her so she wouldn't see my hands. Finally, after she got down with her client, she came over to me and lifted my hands. She went back to her table, got her equipment, and started working on my hands, gave me brand new set, French manicure, AND a charm. (Yes, I know charms are played, but this was backhandedly). I did come back and pay her some $$$ about a month later, when I got back on track, it was the least I could do.

I can only pray to the Lord that I am in a position like that one day in life, where I am poised to help someone, no questions asked. And for those of you in readership that have done this a time of two, trust when I say, you will not be forgotten.

Have you done random acts of kindness? Have you been the recipient of them? Would love to hear your stories.

Live, from LA, this is P reporting to you from KPAT-FM, the Pattyopolis Network.

9 comments:

Msnhim said...

I try my best to help anyone I can help.... to me its no big deal. You sure were lucky:-)

Let said...

Wow you were very lucky to have those angels in your life when you needed them.

Well when I was 18 I have a Saturn coupe lets just say it wasn't the best car in the world but it got me to point A then to B and back to A. I was looking for a new car and I bought one but I didn't know what to do with the Saturn I didn't want to sell it cause well it winked at me (one head light was busted) but the car ran great. So one of my sisters friends was a single mom and she had to wake up really early to get her kids to the day care then her other kid to school and then she was always late to work. When I heard of her problem I gave her my Saturn, this girl was in tears and I didn't take one dime for it. Its cool she now gave her my Saturn to her older daughter so I see it every now and then.

Karma repaid me I now have a wonderful hubby in my life and wouldn't change him for the world....

Lāā said...

Three years ago I was looking for a stable job...I needed to get out of the place I was working quick, fast and in a hurry.

I was at one of the prisons trying to use my finesse to get a job and I get a call for an interview. She gave me the details about the position and asked for my email address. She emailed me the specific location of the interview.

Fast forward to the day of the interview. My interview time was 10:30 am, so I left around 8:50 am, since it was about an hours drive and I wanted to make sure I was there on time.

I'm prepared in my power suit, heels, hair done and I have my resume portfolio. I'm pulling up into the parking lot and I look for the email that she sent me. I can't find it...I realize I left it on my bed. It's now 10:10 and there's no way that I could make it back home and to the interview. I couldn't call the number that was on my cell phone because it was a main number and I didn't remember her name.

So, I enter the huge building (15 floors and at least a hundred suites) and I tell the security guard the agency that I'm going to. I'm thinking that it can't be that big and I should be able to find where I'm interviewing quickly. They send me to the 12th floor and I try to ask employees about my interview and they won't talk to me because they think that I'm a claimant. I get sent to other floors and I get the same exact treatment. I'm panicking because it is now 10:25 and I still don't know where I'm supposed to be.

I go to another floor and the lady helps me find the HR department which in turn makes a few calls and then they walk me down to my interview. If she would not have helped me, I would have just walked out and went home. Who wants to work somewhere that the employees aren't helpful?

Finally, I end up getting the job thanks to the lady that helped me (Liz). I was going through a divorce at the time and I had decided wherever I get a job, that was where I was going to move. It worked out because I make a lot more than I did and I'm closer to where my family lives. And I wouldn't have met my man (T) if I hadn't moved down here.

Sorry for the long story...maybe I should have just put it on my blog.

Dal said...

P what up baby girl. i committed an act of random kindess just this past weekend. If you guys have heard, the NY tristate caught anywhere from 18 to 31 inches of snow. I personally had 24 in my driveway. I have all the toold snowblower, riding mower, leaf blower and mulcher etc. Well my next door neighbor is a widow with a no good lazy son. My wife and I drove by earlier going to check on my mother and I decided then that I would do her snow. I just went on did her yard and put my stuff away.

Monday I went home during lunch and there was a thnak you note. then when I got hom, she came over and rang the bell. she was so impressed that I had done that and said that noone does things like that anymore just because.

I told her theat the Bible says to take car of the widows and fatherless boys, and when I said that she burst into tears. It was very humbling to say the least.

NegroPino™ said...

What a really heartbreaking story......My random acts of kindness come nowhere near as close but GOd is good, All the time.....My ANGEL has been good to me this whole week...so I know the feeling...:)

African girl, American world said...

gurl I love them cause they leave me shook! I'll e-mail you my post about my last one and I swear this man said to me when I tried to offer him money, just do something nice for someone else. SHOOK I tell ya! For me, church sermons don't do it anymore but random acts of kindness do.

The Sarccastik Variable Why said...

it's amazing how the lord bless you when you least expect it....wow..random acts of kindness, good post

Anonymous said...

When I was looking at colleges, the guidance counselor at my school called an admissions counselor at a particular university. She met with me at school. While we were talking she asked me if I had seen the campus. I told her that I hadn't and couldn't get a ride down there. She said that she could take me on a day that was good for me. After the 90 minute trip down there, she went on a TWO HOUR walking tour when she was (unbeknownst to me) SIX months pregnant. I really appreciated that because it wasn't in her job description(she worked in an office), she had never done that for anyone, and I think it went beyond just recruiting.

African girl, American world said...

ok here it is

http://hapee2bnapee.blogspot.com/2005/03/god.html