Never underestimate the power of a random act of kindness.
Like ripples radiating from a rock thrown onto the smooth surface of a lake, so the effects of a good deed can encourage and inspire others. And, like those ripples, the effect can be much greater and spread much further than you could ever have imagined.
I witnessed a tiny example of this sitting in the queue at the petrol station. In Sydney, Tuesday is the cheap day for fuel. For reasons unrelated to market forces or the global economy, Sydney “servos” lower their prices on the second day of the week and cause a mini-stampede of drivers keen to bag a bargain.
As you would imagine, this means queueing for ages and tempers can easily get frayed.
On this particular day, I was four or five cars back in line waiting to use the petrol pump. There were another four identical queues stretching across the forecourt and beyond.
I watched as the driver at the front of our queue finished filling up and slotted the nozzle back into the pump. However, instead of dashing inside to pay his bill, he hopped behind the wheel of his car, started the engine and moved his vehicle forward. This meant the next driver in line could start the job in hand much sooner.
I’m sure each person in that queue was delighted to know they would be home for dinner 10 minutes earlier that night. But it didn’t end there. Taking the generous driver’s lead, each person in turn began moving their car forward as they finished at the pump, a minor inconvenience for them, but a major benefit to those waiting. And each driver smiled and thanked the next as they went on their way – what an amazing chain reaction from such a tiny good deed.
There is a quote in The Shack by William P. Young that goes as follows:
“If anything matters, then everything matters. Because you are important, everything you do is important. Every time you forgive, the universe changes; every time you reach out and touch a heart or a life, the world changes. With every kindness and service, seen or unseen, his purposes are accomplished and nothing will ever be the same again.”
I love to think that in that tiny moment in time at a Sydney petrol station, when one driver chose to inconvenience himself to benefit everyone else, the universe changed in ways that we will never fully know.
Deborah
Like ripples radiating from a rock thrown onto the smooth surface of a lake, so the effects of a good deed can encourage and inspire others. And, like those ripples, the effect can be much greater and spread much further than you could ever have imagined.
I witnessed a tiny example of this sitting in the queue at the petrol station. In Sydney, Tuesday is the cheap day for fuel. For reasons unrelated to market forces or the global economy, Sydney “servos” lower their prices on the second day of the week and cause a mini-stampede of drivers keen to bag a bargain.
As you would imagine, this means queueing for ages and tempers can easily get frayed.
On this particular day, I was four or five cars back in line waiting to use the petrol pump. There were another four identical queues stretching across the forecourt and beyond.
I watched as the driver at the front of our queue finished filling up and slotted the nozzle back into the pump. However, instead of dashing inside to pay his bill, he hopped behind the wheel of his car, started the engine and moved his vehicle forward. This meant the next driver in line could start the job in hand much sooner.
I’m sure each person in that queue was delighted to know they would be home for dinner 10 minutes earlier that night. But it didn’t end there. Taking the generous driver’s lead, each person in turn began moving their car forward as they finished at the pump, a minor inconvenience for them, but a major benefit to those waiting. And each driver smiled and thanked the next as they went on their way – what an amazing chain reaction from such a tiny good deed.
There is a quote in The Shack by William P. Young that goes as follows:
“If anything matters, then everything matters. Because you are important, everything you do is important. Every time you forgive, the universe changes; every time you reach out and touch a heart or a life, the world changes. With every kindness and service, seen or unseen, his purposes are accomplished and nothing will ever be the same again.”
I love to think that in that tiny moment in time at a Sydney petrol station, when one driver chose to inconvenience himself to benefit everyone else, the universe changed in ways that we will never fully know.
Deborah
2 comments:
Beautiful!
Jane
I feel so inspired by what you have shared Deborah.
Not only did people get home earlier, no doubt they carried with them a lttle more faith in humanity.
Thanks.
Annie
Post a Comment