Dear Kind Stranger,
Thank you so much. Your act of generosity and selfishness is something I will cherish and remember when I can be a Kind Stranger for someone else. Your action is a blessing, a lesson, a treasure, and an inspiration all in one. Kind Stranger, thank you. The ripple effect begins with you.
I have, with the universe to thank, only hit what I know as rock bottom once in my life and you were there for me. You were there when I had no friends nearby, not to their fault because they were all in a different country, to help me through my times. They were there to the best of their abilities via Skype calls and consoling messages. You were there when my supposed “one” let me down for one last time and left me to move out on my own of our shared apartment. Kind Stranger, I was crying so loud, the loudest I have ever let myself cry and it was echoing in our empty bedroom. I bawled, I couldn’t breathe, I broke down. I called my best friend in America and he calmed me down and lifted me up. But my face showed how broken I was in each shade of red, in both swollen eyes, and in the teary tracks.
You caught me in the elevator pushing my first load and made small talk with my palpable face. You asked me if I was moving and if I was okay, and when I told you why I was moving out on my own, you comforted saying, “You know, this is life. It happens but you have to remember to keep going and believe in yourself and the good in other people.” I thanked you because I knew deep down what you were saying was true but my heart was too broken to listen. Then despite my insistent declines, you pushed my cart to my new apartment a couple blocks down. Kind Stranger, I don’t think you know how close to crying I was again as you pushed my cart and I manoeuvred the front. Your kindness saved me. You are “the good in other people” I have to believe in and you were right there. You made me believe despite my broken state and I could not think of anything more a human being can do to another. Then you offered me your business card for when I ever needed any help or to talk. Thank you.
Kind Stranger, I see your presence everywhere. I see it when someone offers their seat to another on a crowded bus. I see it when a person helps pick up another person’s belongings. I see it when a friendly local gives directions to a lost tourist without being asked. I see it everywhere. It’s yours and their spirits that keep the good and love in the world from being forgotten.
Thank you Kind Stranger, your light is what leads the world to the best it can be. To the best we can make it.
Sincerely,
Image by K From the Mountain.
