By Nancy Rynes, author of Awakenings from the Light
This is a letter from a reader who wanted to share how the kindness she showed to a stranger affected a waitress. I'm sharing it with you to inspire and share a little hope that this world is actually a pretty cool place.
Dear Nancy,
I wanted to write to you to let you know that I tried one of your suggestions for being kind to others. What happened? Well, I made a waitress cry!
About a year ago, I saw one of your inspirational messages on social media...this one was about kindness and it gave suggestions about how we can show kindness to strangers. I've tried a few of its suggestions and since the recipients were people I didn't know and I stayed anonymous, I never had the chance to see the aftereffects. Well, until I tried one of your suggestions just a few weeks ago.
On a recent road trip, instead of being kind to a stranger by paying for his coffee, I wanted to do something different. I happened to be driving across Oregon on my way to visit family further south in California, but had to stop for the night in a small town on the eastern side of the state. Before cozying up to an adventure novel in my hotel room, I went to dinner at a family-owned restaurant that catered to the locals. Anyway, I was alone and sitting toward the back of the restaurant. Having just ordered my meal, I snuck a little people-watching in between reading articles in a local travel magazine. I saw the waitress seat an elderly man, alone, at the table next to mine. My new "neighbor" was tall, slender, well-dressed in chinos and a blue button-down shirt, sported a full head of gray hair, and shuffled a little as he walked.
But as he sat at the next table, I got the impression that he wasn't comfortable at the prospect of eating alone. I have been single for many years so I am used to doing things by myself. But something about his body language told me this man was not used to being alone. I smiled at him and nodded, but he quickly looked away as if he didn't want to interact with anyone. I felt a pang of sadness for this man and desperately wanted to sit down with him and ease his apparent loneliness, but his body language told me that might not be a good idea. Every time I tried to smile at him or make eye contact, he looked away or down at his hands. Not wanting him to be even more uncomfortable than he already was, I stopped trying to connect with him. Instead, I sent him silent blessings and said a little prayer for him.
I really wanted to do something more, though. As he was ordering his meal, I finished mine and was ready to ask for my check when I had an idea about how I could pass on a little kindness. On a paper napkin, I wrote a message to the waitress, "I want to pay for the supper of the man sitting next to me, but I want to keep quiet about it. Can you help me?"
When the waitress came to my table to drop off my check, I pushed the napkin toward her and watched her as she read it. I saw a quick flash of surprise on her face, then her expression softened. She gently smiled and then started to cry!
"Thank you," she said, sniffling back her tears, and quickly walked off to print the elderly man's check for me. I followed her to the cash register so that I could pay for both meals without the man seeing me. Once there I asked her if she knew him. She said that she didn't know him well but he was a regular customer whose wife of many years had recently passed away. That explained his discomfort at being in the restaurant alone, and I knew in my heart that this small act of kindness was exactly the right thing for me to do for him.
I don't know how the gentleman felt about me paying for his meal but the waitress' reaction told me that my little act of kindness made a positive impact.
Paulette S., Vancouver, B.C. (Canada)
Thank you Paulette! I love stories like this. The more we can show kindness and compassion to others, the more we spread goodness, love, and light to the whole world. I think it's beautiful that the waitress was so affected by your act...it sounds like you made her day. Thank you for sharing a little love with people you may never see again.
I'm sure the gentleman appreciated your kindness and maybe even passed it along to someone else. It's these little things that can often have impacts bigger than we can imagine.
In the future, I'll share more stories of kindness and give a little background on what scientists are discovering about compassion.
Blessings,
Nancy
This is a letter from a reader who wanted to share how the kindness she showed to a stranger affected a waitress. I'm sharing it with you to inspire and share a little hope that this world is actually a pretty cool place.
Dear Nancy,
I wanted to write to you to let you know that I tried one of your suggestions for being kind to others. What happened? Well, I made a waitress cry!
About a year ago, I saw one of your inspirational messages on social media...this one was about kindness and it gave suggestions about how we can show kindness to strangers. I've tried a few of its suggestions and since the recipients were people I didn't know and I stayed anonymous, I never had the chance to see the aftereffects. Well, until I tried one of your suggestions just a few weeks ago.
On a recent road trip, instead of being kind to a stranger by paying for his coffee, I wanted to do something different. I happened to be driving across Oregon on my way to visit family further south in California, but had to stop for the night in a small town on the eastern side of the state. Before cozying up to an adventure novel in my hotel room, I went to dinner at a family-owned restaurant that catered to the locals. Anyway, I was alone and sitting toward the back of the restaurant. Having just ordered my meal, I snuck a little people-watching in between reading articles in a local travel magazine. I saw the waitress seat an elderly man, alone, at the table next to mine. My new "neighbor" was tall, slender, well-dressed in chinos and a blue button-down shirt, sported a full head of gray hair, and shuffled a little as he walked.
I really wanted to do something more, though. As he was ordering his meal, I finished mine and was ready to ask for my check when I had an idea about how I could pass on a little kindness. On a paper napkin, I wrote a message to the waitress, "I want to pay for the supper of the man sitting next to me, but I want to keep quiet about it. Can you help me?"
When the waitress came to my table to drop off my check, I pushed the napkin toward her and watched her as she read it. I saw a quick flash of surprise on her face, then her expression softened. She gently smiled and then started to cry!
"Thank you," she said, sniffling back her tears, and quickly walked off to print the elderly man's check for me. I followed her to the cash register so that I could pay for both meals without the man seeing me. Once there I asked her if she knew him. She said that she didn't know him well but he was a regular customer whose wife of many years had recently passed away. That explained his discomfort at being in the restaurant alone, and I knew in my heart that this small act of kindness was exactly the right thing for me to do for him.
I don't know how the gentleman felt about me paying for his meal but the waitress' reaction told me that my little act of kindness made a positive impact.
Paulette S., Vancouver, B.C. (Canada)
Thank you Paulette! I love stories like this. The more we can show kindness and compassion to others, the more we spread goodness, love, and light to the whole world. I think it's beautiful that the waitress was so affected by your act...it sounds like you made her day. Thank you for sharing a little love with people you may never see again.
I'm sure the gentleman appreciated your kindness and maybe even passed it along to someone else. It's these little things that can often have impacts bigger than we can imagine.
In the future, I'll share more stories of kindness and give a little background on what scientists are discovering about compassion.
Blessings,
Nancy
Stuff You Might Have Missed
**Nancy on NBC's TODAY Show**
Archive: Past Newsletter Issues
Article: Lives Changed by NDEs (Boulder Daily Camera)
Article: Awakening to Life (Pages 6-10, Journal of Exceptional Experiences and Psychology, Summer 2016)
Article: The Meaning of Life
Article: The Things I Learned from Dying
 |
Bio: Nancy Rynes is a speaker, artist, and author of "Awakenings from the Light" (available from Amazon.com). Nancy's books and workshops teach you how to bring a little bit of Heaven to your life on Earth. She divides her time between Seattle, Washington and Tucson, AZ. Check out her website at NancyRynes.com
Copyright © 2018 Nancy Rynes, All rights reserved.