Nice People Do Exist

Yep, nice people do exist! That is right. You heard me shout that loud and clear. In today’s society of hustle and bustle, it is hard to believe this statement could be said, much less verified. Yet, I have witnessed a true and kind human being who had nothing to gain from the experience, just the purity of being nice!

In today’s world, the kindness humans possess seem to be going downhill at an unnaturally fast rate. The problem is, it is an avalanche effect. It starts at the top, and what only took a small push, has grown faster and faster as it picks up speed. It is the act of being unkind. One unkind act will run into others and will cause another unkind act. When the avalanche hits the bottom, there will no longer be any more acts of kindness in the world. Hopefully, we won’t be living to witness that.

The only way to fight this avalanche is with another avalanche… the avalanche of kindness.

The story starts out like any other day in Southern California. The sun is out and shining, even though the weather man has promised rain. Not that I really listen to the weatherman, after all, it is the one job you can consistently get wrong and still keep. With that, I sent my kids off to school.

Within an hour of my daughters catching the bus, the drizzle begins. The drizzle turns into solid raindrops which then turn into sheets of water pouring down across the area. Not that it effects me; I am in the house all nice and cozy warm. Did I mention that I am also dry! Yep, cause that is important. Especially when it is raining out.

Needless to say, I was left all to myself with my son. My daughters were off to school and my husband had left with the car. It is our only car right now since there really is no need for us to have two vehicles. Yet, inside of the car was also our only umbrella.

With my husband gone, taking the umbrella with him as his prisoner… (Ok, so he didn’t steal it. He probably didn’t realize it was even in the car! But, it wasn’t in my possession, which at the time was all that really mattered!), I started to get nervous. My daughter would be coming home on the bus in about an hour and it was still raining. The bus stop was about a quarter of a mile away, which would be a long walk without an umbrella in the rain.

Yet, somewhere out there, my luck started to improve. The sun came out and the sky stopped crying. It was perfect timing. It happened right before I had to get my daughter. Yet, unfortunately, I forgot about putting my son’s stroller in the garage before the rain, so my 1 year old would have to endure the trek down the street on foot, since the stroller was completely soaked. So together, my son and I left for a walk.

To get the idea of where we live, our house is on top of a hill, that obviously goes uphill both ways, regardless of whether you are coming or going. The walk anywhere in this neighborhood, is not an easy one. Now imagine, a young child who usually takes a walk in the stroller, doing this on foot. He did well, but definitely kept the pace moderately slow. But give him a break, he is after all only 1 and his legs are short.

Unfortunately, the slow pace would put us halfway down the hill as the sprinkles started coming back. That meant there was no time to head back and get an umbrella. I looked up to the sky and just hoped that it would hold out for another 10 minutes. That would be long enough for me to grab my daughter and get back into the house before it let loose.

Naturally, my luck had changed. It doesn’t take foreshadowing to know that by the time we reached the end of the street, the rain was coming down steady. Luckily, a steady rainfall in California is barely anything to get you wet. You will become damp by it, but nothing more than a slight irritation. Naturally, I also learned I shouldn’t make fun of mother nature. She has a way of proving me wrong!

Standing at the bus stop, the rain started coming down harder and harder. I took shelter underneath a pole, which obviously didn’t provide much cover, but it was better than nothing. I stood there with my son, wishing just this once, the bus would be early today. Yet, even though most days the bus did arrive 5 minutes early, today was not one of those days.

Out of nowhere, a big black truck sped up to the side of the street. A young man looked out with genuine concern in his eyes.

“Did you need a ride somewhere?”

I must have been looking pretty pathetic. A mother griping onto her child, hiding under a skinny pole trying to stay out of the rain and keep her son as dry as possible. Yet, I couldn’t help but smile at his kindness. I informed him that I was just waiting for the bus to arrive so I could get my daughter. He didn’t waiver, and he obviously didn’t seem to have anywhere he needed to be in a hurry, so he offered me the warmth of his truck while I waited. I, of course thinking of all the wierdos out there, didn’t hesitate in telling him no once again.

“Thank you so much for offering. Yet, I am already wet, so I might as well just suck it up for a few more minutes,” I said with a smile on my face. After all, the rain was still more dampening than it was really getting me wet. With that, he nodded his head and sped off.

My daughter got off the bus a minute later, and I rushed her up the street. It was still raining and I wanted to get home fast. I didn’t want to win the “Parent of the Year” award for being the only parent without an umbrella in hand when the rain broke out.

It only took us a few steps heading up the hill before I heard the dreaded noise. You know the noise I am referring to. It is the gush of wind and the patter of rain right before it hits. It is the wave that you hear before the big storm hits. It only took a few seconds before those tiny raindrops turned into sheets. It is the hard rain; the one that floods streets; the one that causes the grass to drown. The one that was only seconds away, and I was still a good five minute walk away from the house, completely uphill.

Yep, it hit. With my son on my shoulders I picked up my pace, yet my daughter was still lagging behind. The sheets of rain poured down, and I could feel the rain spraying my face as if I had thrown a hose on myself. My son squealed with laughter. He thought it was funny. My daughter said it was no big deal, after all she was wearing her jacket and felt quit dry. I, on the other hand, was in a T-shirt and jeans, and the longer I was in the rain, the more my wet pants started to drag me down.

Finally, we get to the door and run inside. I am drenched from top to bottom, with the exception of my shoulders (where my son had been sitting!)

“That’s it! If this is the way the day is going to treat me, I am putting my pajamas back on!”

I get dried off and change, and as soon as I come back down stairs, I look outside. After the sheets of rain had poured down on me, the sun had come out to show her face. Go figure, now that I was inside, the sun was out. Yet, now that I was dry, it seemed a little funny. Or maybe I wasn’t in such a bad mood because of the young man that was nice enough to offer some help.

I guess what it comes down to is there are two different lessons that you should take away from this:

The first lesson is there are still people out there who genuinely kind. We seem to forget that in this hustle and bustle type of life. When we are stranded on the side of the road, people usually don’t stop in fear that you are some sort of weirdo (or because they believe everyone on the planet has a cell phone and has probably already called someone for help!) People have become rude and ignorant. Often times, they will bump into you. Not only have the forgot to apologize, but they are usually mumbling under their breath at how rude you were to get in their way. Yet, beyond all that, there are still people out their who are genuinely kind. They may be far and few between, but it does exist.

And secondly, you should never mock Mother Nature. After all, when you expect it to be sunny and warm, it is often cold. That usually occurs when you forget to bring a sweatshirt with you. When you think it is going to be cold, you dress nice and warm only to end up with clothes drenched in sweat. And of course, when you expect no rain, that is when you forget your umbrella. So, here I go again, mocking Mother Nature. So, if you do the same, just remember to carry your umbrella.