I was at the grocery store today when the cashier, noticing the long line that was forming, announced that there was another express line for people with just a few items. Apparently the man in front of me didn't like something about the way she said it and responded rudely to her. I'm not exactly sure what he said but I could see the shock on her face. I tried to think of words to make up for his and ended up with something along the weak line of “Don't worry about him, he was just rude.” She said “Oh I don't care, he was a jerk.” But I could tell by her expression and the way she looked toward where he had walked away, that it really did bother her.
I said a while back that one fun thing about writing this blog is that people like to tell me their stories about when strangers have been kind to them or vice versa. I'm also realizing that people tend to tell me about times when they have encountered unkind strangers. And that those experiences stay with us as vividly as the random acts of kindness. A friend recounted the other day about when she and her husband slowed down in a parking lot to admire a good looking dog and the person in the car behind them said “Move your car you f***** a******” That experience, and the feelings associated with it, will never be forgotten.
So it seems, whether it is relatively quick act of kindness or a brief flash of thoughtlessness, the effect on others is just as profound.
Hey Betsy, speaking of having an effect - I read this every day, and although I don't do kind acts as much as I should, I have found that I do them much more frequently since reading this! Even when I don't feel like doing them, I think to myself "it would be a nice thing to do, and it really wont take much time." I found that even little things, like just letting people go ahead of me in line or bringing shopping carts back to the right place make a difference. And I tell Paul about this every day, but never really know if he's listening. To my shock the other day he informed me that when he went to lunch at Little Caesar's he ordered a personal pizza for the next person who came in. I couldn't believe it when he told me! So thank you for doing this - kindness is catchy! :)
ReplyDeleteI LOVE hearing this!
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