what a wonderfully kind gesture
for someone to leave a gallon of milk and bread behind
to be discovered by someone else who may need it more.
—
“let us temper our criticism with kindness. none of us comes fully equipped.”
-carl sagan
on a tired evening after a long day at school
i arrived for my hair appointment
already ready to be home
a stylist new to me
was running late
quite a patient person by nature
i felt myself becoming impatient
really wanting to be done and home
and on and on about me
finally she was ready
we took the elevator and headed upstairs
thinking about waking up at 4:30 the next am.
i sat down in her chair
sensing she had been through something
while she worked we began to talk about our lives
she shared things with me:
she can only work 3 days at a time and then needs 2 days off
due to a chronic illness that has affected her leg
(ah, the elevator)
she is one of eight children raised by a single mother
she was a very young mother years ago
she loves her daughter, granddaughter, and mother dearly
she is sharing rides with a co-worker as her car is not working
she doesn’t always have dinner or time for it
this was her last week at the salon
she needed some down time to recover
she would love to have her own little salon one day
she spoke of other joys and challenges in her life
determined not to give up and make the best of things
such a strong soul
i felt ashamed for my impatience
happy i had waited and not expressed it
i had nothing to complain about
she was an incredible person
still kind and happy
still in the midst of overcoming hard things
i tried to offer encouraging words
wished her well
gave her a restaurant card i had in my wallet
as we parted ways
i was reminded to always consider the other person
wait before reacting or rushing to judgement
we really have no idea what someone’s life is like
i thanked her
so very grateful for the lesson.
—
“let the first impulse pass, wait for the second.”
-baltasar gracian
a bit ironic
that the man who was installing my wood flooring
showed up at my house
on the second day of work
looking rough
telling me how he had helped his friend
take down a dying tree in his yard
only to be knocked out cold and hit in the ribs
by a wayward giant branch
a piece of wood
that did not fall into place as planned.
I suggested he take the day off
to go to the doc or for some r&r
to come back and finish
whenever he felt better.
glad he took me up on my offer
and left for the day.
shows something about his work ethic
that he showed up
the very next day
prepared to work as hard as ever.
his comment –
” I know I look like I’ve been hit by a tree, but I’m okay,
it’s not the worst thing that’s ever happened to me.
lots of people have it a lot worse.”
—
“as you slide down the banister of life,
may all the splinters be going in the right direction.”
– author unknown
—
image credit: travelocity. com
when the kinders learned that their classmate
was injured and recovering at home
they quickly gathered
to make their friend a special card
wishing her well
and
letting her know
in their own way
how much they were missing her.
—
“without a sense of caring, there can be no sense of community.”
-anthony j. d’angelo
when glenn had to go through painful surgery
and was at last home again
tiny sweet olive
approached him gently
touched her head to his
let him eat their favorite food first
and moved quietly
next to him
at his special place by the window
just lying there
in silence
for hours on end
while he recovered
offering him
the quiet comfort
of their tender friendship.
—
“besides love and sympathy,
animals exhibit other qualities
connected with the social instincts
which in us would be called moral.”
― charles darwin