UPS brought an Amazon package to our house the other day. I opened it but didn’t recognize the contents. I checked the label and saw that the mailman made a mistake. It was the right number but two avenues over. We live on Lexington, not Madison.
I also saw that it was meant for a high-end Italian restaurant. I figured they wouldn’t miss it and threw the box by the stairs. I’d drop it off when I had time.
I was going out for a walk that evening and walked by the package. Why not drop it off on my way to the park?
I carried it over and got a funny look as I was entering. This is not the type of place where people walk in wearing joggers and holding packages. I handed it to the manager, and he was genuinely surprised. “No one ever does that,” he said.
He shook my hand and asked my name. He offered me a pizza, but I had already eaten. He then offered me a scotch, but I don’t drink. He thanked me again and said to come by any time.
It was the smallest thing. It took me a few minutes, and I didn’t even go out of my way. Besides, it was the right thing to do. I would have taken the package at some point anyway.
What surprised me was what that small act did for me. It felt good to do the right thing and help someone. When I got home, I tried to tell my wife how that small act of kindness made me feel. But I had trouble putting that feeling in words. I’m still having trouble expressing it now. It was the smallest thing, and somehow, it was the highlight of my day.
That happened three days ago, and I’m trying to hold onto that feeling. I know how quickly these outlooks go away. This morning, I walked by a delivery guy struggling to get through a door with his bike. I stopped to hold the door for him. Later, at the airport, I helped an older South Asian woman get her suitcase onto the shuttle.
Small acts for other people. But also for me.
The South Asian woman thanked me and showed me her ticket. She asked me in Punjabi where she should go. I could see she was on the wrong shuttle. I explained the situation to her and that she was going to miss her flight. Her face twisted with sadness and frustration. She told me she didn’t speak much English and had asked so many people where to go and they put her on this shuttle.
I told her where to go once we got off the shuttle. I took down her suitcase, wished her luck, and headed to my gate.
As I walked away, I looked over my shoulder and saw her turn in the wrong direction. She was already lost. I felt bad. There’s no way she’d figure this out alone. I looked at my watch and realized I had time to spare. I caught up to her and told her I could help. We went to the airline desk together, and I explained the situation to the airline agent. “My aunt missed her flight because people gave her the wrong directions. Can you get her confirmed on the next one?”
The agent told us she understood and that she’d do what she could.
While the airline agent worked on the flight change, I made small talk with Auntyji. I learned she was from Jalandhar and was traveling to see family in Wisconsin. That she had just taken a flight from Delhi and had waited for her connection for several hours. That she would land in Chicago and then drive with family to Milwaukee. That she was exhausted and just wanted to sit down.
The agent came back with a confirmed ticket. Auntyji would be on the next flight to Chicago. I told her and gave her the new boarding pass. She thanked me and said she had been so lost and exhausted. She thanked Vahiguru for sending a sardar when she needed help.
It was a little over the top, but I appreciated her gratitude. I loved the feeling of having helped this person in a time of need.
All of this took me less than ten minutes. What would I have been doing in that time otherwise? Probably just sitting at my gate, watching basketball highlights. Instead, I was able to help make this woman’s life so much easier.
I don’t know if there’s a profound takeaway here. I doubt that I’m sharing something you don’t already know. This is a reflection on how small acts of kindness have served me this week. I wanted to write about it so that it becomes more deeply etched in my lifestyle. I’m trying to do what I can to ensure that daily giving becomes part of my daily living.
I also share it as a reminder. We all know this and experience the power of generosity in our own ways. But it slips through our fingers so easily. We forget to do it, and then we forget to think about it at all.
Sometimes, all it takes is a small nudge to remember who we want to be and how we want to live. Here’s hoping that these small acts of kindness are valuable as reminders to you as they are to me.
One reason I decided to subscribe to your posts is because my dad, a retired Christian pastor, always holds high regard for his Sikh friends. Today I was refreshing my mind on a passage in the Bible that tells us to think on what is true, deeds worthy of respect, what is right or just or holy, what brings peace, on goodwill towards others, moral excellence because of faith held, of praiseworthy things...it says to thinks on these continually - keep them at the forefront of our minds.
What you've shared here, your thoughts, really spoke to my heart today and gave me something true to think on. Thank you.
This is a beautiful reminder of how wonderful it is to give of ourselves - whether it be our time or our words. It really is more blessed to give than to receive. Thank you for sharing!