Kindness

Recently, I was leaving the grocery store here in Houston with my arms full of 48 cupcakes, a sandwich, chips, and a drink (don't worry, the cupcakes weren't my desert!) As I was leaving the store 2 people who were NOT employed by Randalls went out of their way to ask if they could help me to my car. At this point, my arms were already balanced and taking anything out of my hands would have meant a pile of psychedelic icing mixed with chocolate cake around my ankles. As I politely declined both gentle men's assistance I begin to think how surprised I was at their offer. Being my cynical self, my first thought was "they must expect something in return." Being that it was pajama day at work and I was all decked out in my turquoise plaid flannel and house shoes, I doubt they wanted ANYTHING I could offer! My second thought was that they worked at the grocery store. Seeing no uniform in sight, I quickly ruled out that option as well. After spending WAY too much time thinking about the men's reasoning for offering to help, I came to the conclusion they were just being kind. These men stopped what they were doing, took time from their day, to ask if I needed help. I was shocked! After getting over my surprise, I began to think (again, way too much) about WHY I was so surprised by their offer. I live in one of the four largest cities in the nation, one of the biggest meccas for business, medicine, and shopping. Shouldn't there be some kind people out of the MILLIONS who reside in Houston? Logic says yes, but where are they?!?! On a daily basis, I hear someone curse another person out, see people get the finger when driving, here horns blaring, witness fights, and fear for my own safety with illegal guns being carried by so many. So much so in fact, I was incredibly shocked by the kindness of 2 gentlemen in the Randalls parking lot. Has the world really come to this? Is everyone so self centered and focused on THEIR time, THEIR needs, and THEIR goals, they can't see those of someone else? Unfortunately, I think so. After spending my entire ride back to work and a quite a bit time at my desk daydreaming about this subject, I decided to make my goal to show kindness to 1 person a day. I want to go out of my way to be thoughtful, show generosity, and demonstrate the meaning of being a neighbor. Just 1 person a day. Surely I can do that. Maybe these 2 men in the Randalls parking lot have inspired a revolution against this rushed, selfish, angry world we live in. I hope so.