Random Acts of Kindness

December 1, 2010

To the man in the black Olive Tree Construction truck…THANK YOU for committing a Random Act of Kindness this morning!!

Timing is everything. It takes only a split second to miss the mark.

That’s what happened to me this morning on my commute to an appointment in Wellesley (MA). I suddenly found myself in the middle of the intersections of Rt 16 and Rt 2 just as the light turned red; I was a sitting duck at the mercy of the oncoming traffic. The rear end of my car blocked three flows of traffic. Cars honked at me to move, but the long stream of traffic ahead wasn’t budging. I silently prayed that nobody would hit me. Time stood still. I was seeing red for what seemed an eternity…so were the other drivers as they greeted me with angry stares, loud beeping and colorful gestures as they whizzed past, nearly missing my car. Was the traffic light working!?!?!?!?

In the midst of this chaotic scene, a man (a couple cars ahead) suddenly jumped out of his truck. Oh great, I thought. Watch the light change and then everybody will be stuck because this jerk suddenly decides he wants to say hello to his buddy at the front of the line. What the heck was he thinking?

I watched incredulously as the man ran up to the lead car; he lowered his head towards the driver’s window. His arms swayed gracefully in a sweeping motion (could this be a solo Swan Lake flash mob?) He seemed to be guiding the car to move forward. The car had stopped about 5 ft behind the stopping line. The man kept waving the guy to move forward. Finally, there was enough space for the other cars to move ahead giving me space to inch forward…finally I was out of the way of oncoming traffic.

Then it struck me. The guy was actually trying to help me. As he headed back to his car, I raised my hand in gratitude for his incredible and unexpected gesture of kindness. He threw a hand into the air (his head hung low) and shrugged a slight nod towards me. Just as he jumped back into his truck, the light turned green. Timing is everything.

(As he drove away, I noted the Christian fish symbol on his car…perhaps one of God’s angels sent to enlist His aid?)

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Angels are among us...often we're unaware of their presence in our lives. We're never alone. Someone is always watching out for us. God always has our back.

Just wanted to pass on my story of gratitude for a Random Act of Kindness for which I was the recipient. Have you committed any Random Acts of Kindness lately? Make someone's day...spread kindness wherever you go. :)