Do you remember how back in the 1990s, there was a movement called "Random Acts of Kindness," created in defiance of all the "random acts of violence" we were always hearing about?
And you know that old, but quite true, cliche about how you should "never judge a book by its cover"?
Well, on Friday afternoon, as Andrea and I were waiting at the bus stop for our bus home to arrive, she was really getting frustrated. She was tired, and teething, and all out of sorts, so she kept whining and crying and kicking, and all that fun stuff.
Our bus stop is in front of a plaza, and there was an older man out there cutting the grass, and cleaning up garbage. He looked kind of scruffy, and he kept giving me dirty looks like we were in his way, or I didn't know how to control my child. Anyway, he didn't look too friendly, and that made me even more stressed out than I already was.
Some time passed, and our bus still hadn't come. It was late. Andrea was frazzled, and so was I! I leaned down to sing some of her favourite calming songs to her. Suddenly, the old man is there, leaning over my shoulder, and he is holding a stuffed dog. "Look!" he says to Andrea. "It's a puppy! Woof, woof!" Then, he makes it do a little dance in front of her, to try to get her to laugh. I explained that she was having a tough day. He said, "Here, she can have this!" He gave me the stuffed animal, and walked off before I could even say thank-you.
And you know that old, but quite true, cliche about how you should "never judge a book by its cover"?
Well, on Friday afternoon, as Andrea and I were waiting at the bus stop for our bus home to arrive, she was really getting frustrated. She was tired, and teething, and all out of sorts, so she kept whining and crying and kicking, and all that fun stuff.
Our bus stop is in front of a plaza, and there was an older man out there cutting the grass, and cleaning up garbage. He looked kind of scruffy, and he kept giving me dirty looks like we were in his way, or I didn't know how to control my child. Anyway, he didn't look too friendly, and that made me even more stressed out than I already was.
Some time passed, and our bus still hadn't come. It was late. Andrea was frazzled, and so was I! I leaned down to sing some of her favourite calming songs to her. Suddenly, the old man is there, leaning over my shoulder, and he is holding a stuffed dog. "Look!" he says to Andrea. "It's a puppy! Woof, woof!" Then, he makes it do a little dance in front of her, to try to get her to laugh. I explained that she was having a tough day. He said, "Here, she can have this!" He gave me the stuffed animal, and walked off before I could even say thank-you.
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