“My daughter cried for a birthday party. To be honest, I didn’t want to throw one at all. There were so many expectations as a mom to have everything perfect. I gave in. ‘My son Nehemiah would be 8-years-old today. Hold your baby a little tighter today.’ It was my daughter’s 8th birthday. I broke down in tears.”
‘I walked in to pick up my daughter’s birthday cake. ‘A stranger left you a note.’ I broke down in tears as soon as I read it.’: Grieving mom surprises stranger with act of kindness, ‘You took a sad day and turned it around’
‘I asked if there was anybody named ‘Gordon.’ The woman who answered said, ‘No, no one works here with that name.’: Woman ‘thankful’ for act of kindness after receiving suspicious check
“My husband and I decided it was time to get rid of some NASCAR memorabilia. Within 10 minutes of putting it up I got a message that someone was interested, but they wanted to send a check. I guess it was a good thing I said, ‘Yes,’ because the guy sent me a check for over $2,000. My item was just 50 bucks! The name on the package was not the same as the check.”
‘My card got declined in the checkout line. I was a new mom with 2 kids under 3. I felt like I could just melt into the floor.’: Mom pays it forward after stranger’s act of kindness
“My two-year-old was asking for bubble gum and chocolate bars. Without missing a beat, the man behind me in line handed the cashier his card. ‘I’ve got it.’ He said. My friend at the cash register was near tears by the end of her shift. I won’t ever forget that day and I doubt she has either.”
‘I need a favor.’ We had nothing under our Christmas tree. ‘The only thing I was able to purchase was a nail polish. I need you to be OK with that.’: Woman pays it forward after stranger’s act of kindness on Christmas day
“My single mother took me aside one day. ‘I need your help.’ I looked her in the eye. ‘Do not buy me another thing. If you have any money left, get something for the little girls.’ Christmas morning came. I sat quietly as the others opened their meager gifts. It killed me to watch my mother trying to smile. She felt like she’d failed us. Soon there was a knock. We all scampered to the door of our little duplex. It was hard to breathe as I chocked back tears.”
‘Your meal’s already been covered.’ I don’t have the right words. I teared up.’: Stranger’s act of kindness for mom-of-3 at Cracker Barrel came when she needed it most, ‘my brother was killed on his way home for Thanksgiving’
“At the end of our meal, our server brought us a to-go box and said 5 words with a smile that hit me hard: ‘Your meal’s already been covered.’ Here’s what no one could have possibly seen: Today, 4 years ago, my little brother lived his last day in this world. Today was a ‘Just make it through’ kind of day. Until this moment.”
‘My brother started the ‘naked man’ game when I was 6. I felt so empty I thought I might just float away.’: Woman overcomes sexual trauma, now uses kindness as an ‘act of rebellion’
“I walked home in a dress, but no underwear. I told my mom and dad I was staying with a friend, and then went into the operating room to have my right fallopian tube removed along with the baby that would never be. I went home the next day and said, ‘I feel like I have the flu’ and went straight to bed. My cry for help didn’t work. Nobody noticed. Nobody asked if I was okay. I knew if I didn’t start fighting for myself, I’d end up dead.”
‘Her best friend lost her husband in Afghanistan. His friends would all get black coffee. He always got a big pink smoothie with whipped cream on it. Then, something beautiful happened.’
“One of our favorite regulars walked in to order her usual. I noticed it was taking her a little longer to order, so I glanced over and saw she was crying. The employee on the register was choked up as well, and handed me this post card.”
‘Everyone poops during labor,’ she warned. It was my first time. I couldn’t stop asking questions. ‘Is it normal my water hasn’t broken yet?’ ‘Should I push? When do I push?’
“My questions didn’t stop there. ‘Is the baby okay?’ He was covered in white slime. ‘Should he be that color?’ I felt so completely unprepared. These women never looked at me and said, ‘That isn’t my job.’ That is a hero.”
‘My son complained of pain in his abdomen. He was gray in color, his cheeks sunken in. When he started throwing up, I thought, ‘Maybe he ate something bad.’ I was in denial.’
“We had no family history of it. When we got the news, I was thinking we had some quack doctor in the middle of the desert trying to diagnose my son by smelling his breath. He added, ‘If you waited 3 hours, he would’ve died in the car.’ My heart broke into a million pieces.”
‘Mrs. Fey, I’m sorry for getting in a fistfight during algebra, then calling you the B-word for breaking it up. And what did you do? You showed up at 7 a.m. to work with me one-on-one.’
“My parents were divorced, my father was addicted to painkillers. He was in jail most of high school. My mother and I weren’t getting along. None of this justifies how I acted, and it wasn’t your problem. You made my difficult life bearable.”
