Paying It Forward

Heather:

I've Googled many things in my time, but this week found me searching, "why does my gasoline engine sounds like a diesel?"  As you can probably imagine, nothing good comes from a search like that.  All of the posts mentioned oil being the issue, but my oil light hadn't come on and it hadn't been that long since I had the oil changed...

Picture it: I'm in the parking lot of a local big box store attempting to play mechanic when I hear, "Hey, HT! I thought that was you.  Need some help?"  I look up and see one of my students headed toward me.  I could have cried.  He helped me to decipher the lingo on the various bottles and managed to make me feel a little better about the whole situation.  Whoever said that chivalry is dead has not met this guy.

(I feel I should add that Dad made me learn how to check my oil and change a tire before I was allowed to get my permit.  I'm all about being independent, but I also know when I'm in over my head.  One thing I have learned is that when you are in distress, take help when offered.)

My gasoline powered car sounds less like a diesel powered vehicle now and I have a call in to a mechanic to get it checked.

I should have been worried on the ride home.  What if the oil leaked again and I was left stranded on a back road with no cell phone service?  What if the engine seized?  What if, even after checking and double checking, I had added the wrong oil? (That's just how my mind works.)

I wasn't worried, though.
          I was happy.

The student could have kept on going.  I hadn't seen him and even if I had, there was nothing mandating that he help me.  He stopped and offered help with no promise of anything in return.  I offered to pay him, but he refused.  "Just glad I could help," he said.

Instead of forcing him to take money, I decided to pay his kindness forward.  It felt great.  I know the person I helped can't pay me back any more than I can pay back the young man who helped me.  That's not the point.  The point is to help when you can.  You won't always get a glamorous thank you--sometimes there is no thanks at all.  You will, however, feel better knowing that you have helped to make someone's day a little easier.  That's what I've found, anyway.

Assignment: One random act of kindness. Be as creative as you want, but go out and do something for someone else.  Imagine what the world would be like if everyone did one thing every day for someone else...