I was craving a smoothie, so I went to a raw/organic juice bar near my home. I lost my bankcard and am waiting for a new one in the mail. Instead of going to the bank to withdraw cash, I just grabbed a bunch of quarters from my piggy bank. There was a new smoothie on special. I was short a dollar. A woman saw me counting my quarters to see if I had enough and came over with a bunch of dollar bills. "How much do you need?" she asked. I replied that I am a dollar short and she gave it to me. I just thought that was so sweet of her. Her generous spirit really brightened my day. I thanked her and told her I would "pay it forward".

Its amazing how little effort it takes to be kind, Kindness has that ripple ``efect, Just as violence has its ripples and reverberations,
A little kindness can reverberate manytimes around.
I love the kindness of the people on this site, its reveberating back to me.
thank you all for your kind post on the lose of my friend,
PEACELOVE

that`s awesome. i was at a drive thru starbucks once and when i got to the window they said the lady ahead of me had paid for my drink. i felt awesome and i continued the trend by paying for the peeps behind me.
and i love the movie pay it forward!
patty

wow joanne

that really struck me

its not my habit to talk about bad things about other people but i wanna talk about it anyways cuz it taught me a BIG lesson and made me realize the impact of very small things

once i locked my keys/wallets in my car
i needed to make a phone call to someone to say that i would be late for an appointment

but since everything was in my car
including my wallet
unless i broke in through the window
i couldn't even make a phone call to the locksmith

i asked a guy that was nearby
if he could lend me a quarter so i could make a local phone call

i told him my situation
this guy must have been having a really bad day because he was extremely rude
and unbelievably reluctant

finally i said " that's okay, i'll find another way"

then he slammed down a quarter on the table and said " here!"

since i was desperate and didn't want to have any bad repurcussions for not at least communicating that i was going to be late for an appointment

i took the quarter

i felt very humbled by that

but i'm glad that happened to me

in fact, i'm really grateful for that experience

it made me realize that you are really taking something away from someone
if u give to them begrudgingly

it also made me realize that if you are not able to give something , don't give it

only give from a generous heart

if one gives in a spirit of hatred or resentment

that is the same thing as stealing from that other person

the only true giving is giving out of joy

i'm still grateful to the stranger
cuz i was able to make that phone call

i think the more germane lesson for me was to
always check BEFORE i exit the car

to see that i have my keys and everything on me

i take full responsibility

and he didn't have to give me a quarter
that was his prerogative

but it made me realize that if i were going to give anything
i better damn well give with a cheerful heart

otherwise

what's the point?

if i'm going to give, i might as well be single minded and focused about it and GIVE which means not just with material ( like a quarter) but with my mind, emotion and spirit

i mean, if you're going to give a quarter, might as well.. give all the way

otherwise.. its a stealing giving

and that is downright ridiculous

that's why i say also

if u can't give ( mentally, emotionally, financially, spirituallY)

don't

that is also important to know

riverhouse

<<Its amazing how little effort it takes to be kind, Kindness has that ripple ``efect, Just as violence has its ripples and reverberations,>>

that's so true
violence has repurcussions

kindness has stronger repurcussions
especially when done in a background of violence

here, i'm not just talking about physical violence but all manners of violence including emotional

sometimes the SMALLEST kindness can have TREMENDOUS repurcussions when the person is in need of it the most

la veronique - Thats a good point. It can be a little uncomfortable asking for help, and I imagine upsetting to be "helped" like that. This person probably didn't see that his seemingly small actions do affect others and can ripple. I think it is wonderful that instead of becoming indignant your were thoughtful, able to see the deeper lesson in it.