My sister and I were driving out of the grocery store parking lot when we noticed a mother with a newborn and young daughter walking towards the street with their hands full of grocery bags and a diaper bag.
Usually, without thinking twice, we would continue driving, thinking nothing of the situation. This has happened to each one of us at some point in our lives, right?
But today, I felt an urge. There was something in me that said, "Stop your car. This woman needs help." So, we did.
As I approached the woman, I began to notice her features. She was no longer someone I saw while driving past. She was frail. She was African-American. She was a beautiful woman with an even more beautiful heart.
Without hesitation, I asked her if she needed a ride somewhere. She quickly responded with a, "Yes." followed by, "Thank you for your kindness."
Her young daughter, about five years in age, jumped into our car with her hands full of three grocery bags and the mother carried her newborn, three grocery bags, and a diaper bag into our car. The grocery bags were full of canned items. They hadn't eaten all day, and from the looks of it, their meal for the day was going to be some canned beans and possibly another canned food item.
As I witnessed this, I simply did not have any words to say.
We started the car and the young daughter, named Mariah, told us she would give us directions to her house. Mariah had every reason to be complaining. Her hands were full of bags, they had no transportation, and her meal was out of a canned container. But no, her smile was bigger than any smile I have witnessed before. It spread across her entire face.
About a mile down the road, Mariah told us to turn into their apartment complex. When we pulled up to their apartment, it was extremely run down, yet I looked in the backseat and the mother and Mariah still were smiling.
As they exited the car, the mother repeated, "Thank you for your kindness."
My sister and I drove away as the mother and Mariah waved goodbye to us with smiles plastered on their faces.
For the ten-minute ride home, my sister and I did not speak one word. We were speechless. In that moment, all I wanted to say back to the mother was, "No, thank you for your kindness."
This story is one I hope we all can learn from. Not just learn from, but act on. When we notice ourselves complaining about being hungry when we've eaten just a few hours earlier, or not driving our dream car, let's instead begin to be thankful.
Thankful for each meal we do get because there are plenty of Mariah's out there who go without meals. Thankful for the cars we drive because there are plenty of single mothers out there who go without transportation.
So next time you pass by someone who looks like they need help. Stop. Because who knows, maybe like me, you'll witness someone who gives the word "kindness" an even deeper meaning.
