Major Acts of Kindness - Essay Example

Journal Entries: Acts of Kindness Act Giving up my seat on the bus for an elderly lady I gave up my seat on the bus for an elderly lady. I was onmy way to school riding the bus when I saw an elderly lady shuffling her way into the bus. It was a reflex on my part to give up the seat for her and I could see she was immediately relieved that someone gave up a seat for her. She smiled at me and said, “Bless you, child. Bless you.” I was amused by her remark because I knew right away she was a sweet old lady who reminded me so much of my own grandmother. Her words especially were not unfamiliar to me as I would often hear my own grandmother utter these very same words. I felt good about myself after having given up my seat for the elderly lady. I felt happy and I saw the day for all the possibilities and opportunities it could give me. It was not my conscious choice to give my seat up for the elderly lady. When I saw her looking around for a seat, it was an immediate reflex on my part to offer my own. It was only when she said “bless you, child” when my act of kindness registered in my consciousness. I felt that such a reflex was a major part of my upbringing. I was taught to do the right thing by anyone, especially those who are vulnerable. I also felt that I did the act of kindness because I felt that in the future, I too might need acts of kindness from strangers. In a way, I was hoping that I too would deserve a good turn of kindness when my time to be old and feeble would come. Act 2: Babysitting for a friend’s 2 year old daughter I babysat my friend’s toddler for a few hours while she went to a job interview. Closing in on the weekend, I got a text message from a childhood friend, who was also a single mother, asking me to babysit her 2 year old daughter because she had a job interview. My friend explained that her babysitter unexpectedly came down with the flu and was unable to babysit her child. I knew the job interview was very much important to her because the burden of supporting her daughter was solely in her hands. Although I was supposed to meet up with friends at about the same time my friend issued here request, I knew that she really needed my help then. So, I said yes. I babysat her child for two hours. I basically played with her and entertained her. It was a task I was familiar with because I often played with the child whenever I visited my friend. When my friend came back, she felt relieved that all was fine with her daughter – that the baby did not act up or cry while she was away. I also felt good about myself for having done the act of kindness for my friend. At first, I was a little bit inconvenienced by her request as I was looking forward to hanging out with my other friends. And I also did not want to let my friends down. But weighing in on both activities, I felt that I again had it in me to do the right thing. My friend needed me for a very important moment in her life. One that was very crucial for her and for her daughter. The other activity of hanging out with my friends was something I knew I could postpone and could do another time. I consented to her request and to the act of kindness because she was my friend who needed my help. I also felt that the essence of our friendship was in me being there for her when she needed me the most. I knew I could share good times with anyone – with friends and strangers, but I felt that our friendship meant helping each other in the worse and crucial moments of our lives. Act 3: Helping a mother find her missing child I helped a mother find her missing child in the supermarket. As I was running some errands in the supermarket, I saw a harried lady looking flustered and panicked. When she started calling out a name, I knew that she must have lost her child in the store. I approached her and asked what was wrong and she said her 5 year old son was missing. It was less than 5 minutes since her child went missing. She was just in the detergent lane reaching for a bottle of soap when she looked down and saw that her son was not with her anymore. We started calling the child’s name and we approached the supermarket manager and asked for their help. After about 10 minutes of searching, I found the child hiding behind a counter and eating a bag of chips. The mother was overjoyed to see her child that she was almost crying with joy. She offered her profuse thanks after. It was yet another feel-good act of kindness for me. I felt relieved more than anything about finding her child and about helping her out. I felt that with the thousands of missing children out there, I hoped that this was not one of them. I helped her out because I felt that with more people looking for her child, we could find him faster and ensure that no harm would come to him. I also felt that the longer we would have delayed, the more dangerous it would have been for the child. Act 4: Visiting my grandmother in the nursing home I visited my grandmother in the nursing home. After I gave up my seat in the bus for the elderly lady, I suddenly felt a strong urge to go visit my grandmother in the nursing home. She was 88 years old. When I went to visit her she was so overjoyed to see me. We had a nice long chat and visit. The flowers I brought her also brought a smile to her lips because it was her favorite flower. We exchanged stories about my grandfather and I could see the twinkle in her eye when she spoke of him. I felt very happy to have performed this act of kindness. I felt good about bringing happiness to my grandmother. But I also felt sad after visiting her. I felt guilty that I did not and could not visit her as often and I felt sad that she was getting older. I could see in the way she talked and the way she walked that age had slowed her down. She was not the vivacious and spirited woman I knew in my childhood years. I felt sad because with her age, we might only have a few years left with her. After visiting my grandmother, I felt happy because the memories of my youth were fresh in my mind. I visited my grandmother and performed the act of kindness because I had powerful and compelling need to go visit her. I visited her because I felt that it was my and my family’s responsibility to ensure that she was doing well, that she had sufficient contact with family, and that she would not feel abandoned by her family members. Act 5: I lend money to a friend I received a text message from a friend asking if I could meet up with him for coffee. He said he had a huge favor to ask of me. When I met up with him, he went direct to the point and he said he wanted borrow money from me. Apparently, he was having trouble with his bank and he could not withdraw money from his account, nor could he use his credit card for about a week or until the problem would be resolved by the bank. I knew he was lying. I knew this friend of mine was a pathological liar and a gambler. And I knew that he probably gambled his money away. I knew too that if I were to lend him money that he would again gamble it. I said I could not lend him money yet because I did not have any cash with me. He pleaded with me, asking if we could go to an ATM so we could withdraw some cash. He looked so pitiful in his pleas that I relented. I lent him 500 dollars. After the incident, I did not feel happy at all. For one, I felt that he would not pay me back at all. And I also felt that I just gave him more money to gamble with. I felt bad because in the end, what I actually did for him was not an act of kindness at all – that I instead contributed to his bad habit. I granted him the favor because I felt pity for him. And although I knew that he might just gamble the money away, I also had a fond hope that maybe this time – when he has hit rock-bottom – that he would change and use the money for more beneficial enterprises. Read More