I have been thinking about the ways people do good deeds. One day I was driving south on I-5 and stopped at Lost Hills for gas and to scrape some dead bugs off my windshield - it was a REALLY buggy time of year. I started sloshing water from the station's buckets using their squeegee and wondered if I was doing any good. The young man on the other side of the pumps said, "You'll never get it clean with that stuff. I have something that will work." I thought "Oh, great! I have a salesman on my case. " I demurred, but he said, "It will only take a minute," got a spray can and some terry rags out and went to work. Let me tell you, my windshield hadn't been as clean since it came off the assembly line. But he wasn't selling anything and wouldn't take any money. "Just consider it a good deed," he said as he got in his truck and drove away. It was an uncommonly nice thing to do and I think back on that event frequently. How often do I do a good deed for a stranger? Not very often.
But I remember the movie about "pay it forward" and I sometimes find ways to pay it forward. One thing I do daily is click for Animal Rescue, http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com/
And while I am there I also click for Breast Cancer, Literacy, Rain Forest and Hunger. It just takes a few minutes. Maybe you could also click and think of it as paying it forward. Our world is so fraught with apprehension and stress these days, everything we do to reach out is rewarding.
2 comments:
Windshield and good deeds.
I have a story.
One day I was at the post office and noticed a huge bird dropping right smack in the middle of my driving window. I thought it would be dangerous to drive home with it blocking my vision. I had a few tissues in the car. I went outside and spit at my windshield. I used the tissue and made the splot bigger. I spit again to try again. A man in the car next to me said, "Let me help." He opened his trunk and pulled out a big bottle of window cleaner and a roll of paper towels. He cleaned my window. I thanked him very much.
Nowadays, I carry a big bottle of window cleaner and a roll of paper towels in my trunk. I can't wait to pass it on.
Isn't it a shame that the world has become so dangerous that we are suspicious of good deeds and hesitant to help someone in need for fear of falling into a trap? The other day we were leaving our new house and there was a guy whose car was stalled in the middle of the intersection near the house. My husband and son jumped out of our car and helped the guy, who spoke very little English, push his car to the side of the road and call for roadside assistance. Many cars drove by without even slowing to see if help was needed. The guy's gratitude reminded me how good it feels to do a good deed.
Post a Comment