Human Kindness
Sometimes I’m amazed by the kindness of others. The sheer thoughtfulness and love that is coursing through their body. I was brought to tears over the last few days from just this.
Thursday was a tough day. Both of my boys were home and looking forward to a “mommy day”. The head ache from the night before had turned into a full blown cold and I was feeling like staying in bed. I decided to bring joy to the boys and announced that it was going to be a TV day! I thought Mason was going to fall over from excitement. Miles seeing the biggest smile on his brothers face understood this meant something good and began to bounce up and down.
This started off as an o.k. thing to be doing but there were things I needed to do. One of which was get my mothers insurance straightened out. I can’t even begin to go into the details of this but I’ve discovered how incredibly horrific big business can be. Phone call after phone call, transfer after transfer, no one could help me. The hours started blurring by and I knew I was in trouble when I came out to the living room to check on the boys and Miles was passed out. O.K. maybe it’s time for a break!
I carried Miles up to bed and made lunch for Mason. Once he was done eating he quickly reminded me that it was a TV day so come on, lets go back to watch another show! Me, back on the phone. I’ll just say 5 1/2 hours. Yes, 5 1/2 hours of talking with people that I want to call morons but my conscience tells me that’s not so nice. I think I would probably put Mason on a time out for that. Hmmm. Can someone put me on a time out? I think that’s exactly what I’m needing these days.
But, back to the point of this. After Miles woke up and I carried him past the tv to the office to sit with me for a bit while he woke fully up and he proceeded to scream “more tv, more tv, more tv” I gave in to the depression. I sat him back down with his brother and plopped myself right beside them. I think that lasted 5 minutes when the doorbell rang. Now, this was just about my worst nightmare at that exact instant. Could I run away? Just not answer the door? Impossible with two little boys who think anyone from Santa to the Easter Bunny could be on the other side.
I picked myself up from the couch and opened the door. Me, not showered, hair in a pony tail and a messy one at that, no make-up and still in my pajamas. The boys, in front of our too large television that makes me think we’re at a small theatre each time I look at it, still in their pajamas and jumping on the couch. Sigh. That’s a nice sight for any house guest to witness.
Lisa was standing there, on the other side of that door. An angel that came to make my day turn into something more than pathetic. She had a basket filled with activities for the boys to do in her arms. She just wanted to come by to drop it off and say hi and make sure I was o.k. I wish I hadn’t been sick and that I could have hugged her for what she had done. I probably would have soaked her coat though from the water works that would have poured from my eyes. As she was turning to go she asked if I needed groceries. I burst into tears as she left. Feeling overwhelmed and at a loss for words for how grateful I was at that moment.
The boys were thrilled and couldn’t wait to break into the basket. It was filled with all sorts of goodies and finally, the tv went off!
She was back 20 minutes later with a bag of groceries. She not only picked up the few items I had mentioned, eggs, bread, milk and Nyquill, but she brought juice for the boys, chicken soup and a couple of other things. She turned and walked away as I tried to hand her some money. She called out from the driveway “pay it forward, just pay it forward.” I of course burst into tears again and stood there crying on my front porch.
Lisa, your kindness is overflowing and I am humbled by you. Thank you for who you are and for being such a bright light in the world. When I start to go too deep inside of myself, you’re there to pull me out and remember to think about others and to open my heart as wide as I can.
