Kindness of Strangers

My friend Mrs. 4under4, sent me this story. I thought it was worthy of sharing with all the other moms and strangers out there.
It's always nice to know that there still is kindness and generosity of heart in this world.

It all began on day three of trying to transition our three 18 month old children from two naps to one. On this particular morning, my plan was to drive to Costco for the 9:30am opening, head home by 10:30pm, feed the kids lunch at 11am and have everyone (including our 3 yr. old, Kalyn) down for a nap just before noon. The trick was to keep everyone awake on the 20 minute drive to and from the store . . .

The morning looked promising as the four kids and I were in the car driving away by 9:05am! Unfortunately, Jordyn (our 18 mos old girl) fell asleep within the first three minutes and then awoke crying as we pulled into the Shopping Centre. Something didn’t seem right as the Costco parking lot was completely empty . . . sure enough, it didn’t open until 10am on weekdays.

Since the sun was shining and we were already out of the house, I decided to use the extra time to go for a walk. As I opened the van door to get the stroller, Kalyn yelled, “Mommy, Jordyn threw up!”. Jordyn had only ever been car sick once before (in the middle of a five hour night road trip) and it was one of the hardest things I have ever had to clean up. With trepidation I peered over the back seat and could see that Kalyn was right. Still in a rear-facing car seat, I had not realized that Jordyn’s crying was due to getting sick.

After a quick evaluation of the mess and our situation, I couldn’t decide whether to just drive back home, cry, or keep on going. I chose the latter and after a twenty minute clean up amidst screaming boys wishing to get out of their seats (and the smelly van), I finally managed to get everyone in the stroller. Thank goodness for the extra outfit & Lysol wipes in the diaper bag and the bright, cheery sun in the sky to greet us!

The Costco shopping excursion was brief and as we headed for the cashier, I realized that there were a lot of other early morning shoppers. Line-ups were four or more deep and as we took our place at the end of the line, the people in front of us started commenting on our stroller and children. This is a very common occurrence for us (as I am sure many parents of multiples can relate); however, the events that followed were surprising and heart-warming.

All of the people in front of us began insisting that we move to the front of the line and even offered to help load/unload our goods. I graciously accepted the offer to move ahead as we were already behind schedule. Despite our many trips to retail outlets with the children, this was the first time anyone had offered their place in line to us. It gave me a warm feeling to know that so many people have kind hearts and such generous spirits.
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We hurried to the car and as I quickly loaded the van, one of the ladies from the line-up ran out to meet me. She handed me a bouquet of flowers and with a smile and a hug said, “I saw you in Costco and just wanted to give these to you from one Mom to another”.

It is amazing how a simple act of kindness from a Mom who doesn’t know me was able to “make my day”. She helped me remember how truly blessed I am with our four beautiful children, to appreciate the challenges that arise each day to strengthen my character, and to never forget how a simple act of kindness can make a difference in someone’s life.

I hope you all have the chance to experience or demonstrate an “Act of Kindness” this month and appreciate all of the character-building moments that make you a stronger person and parent.