Tell Me Something Good – Tangible Kindness

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hopefully you are joining in with us for the #31DaysofKindness (you can read more about it here or sign up for a daily emailed reminder here)!

today’s ‘tell me something good’ is a tangible act of kindness my husband and i witnessed sunday night, before 31 days actually started. we finished our last birthing class (woohoo!) and ravery was hungry, i was not (constant snacking will do that to you). he decided what would satisfy his craving was getting pizza.

i waited in the car as he went in to grab the pizza. we took a backroad to get home and witnessed something that made us both feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

a very beat up van stopped next to a family of 5 standing on the street corner, holding a sign asking for any type of help. it was a wife and husband and their three small children, all of their heads turned towards the van.

a woman got out of the worn down van and with a kind smile on her face, handed the family a whole box of pizza. we couldn’t hear what was said but what we could see was how grateful the family was, how struck they were by this stranger’s kindness and how excited they were to eat something. the parents immediately opened the box and passed out slices of pizza to their kids before they took a single bite. the woman got back into her van and drove away.

what struck us was that it didn’t appear that she had a ton of extra money to be giving out (solely judging from the state of her beat up van). however, she had more than this family did at that moment and decided to do something about it. what a strong and powerful lesson, especially when we ourselves have been in financial struggle. we always always have something to give. it may be in the form of a money, food, a smile, a hug or insight but it’s important to remember that we should be focused on making the world a bit sweeter and better, however we can.

we got home, feeling extra grateful to have a roof over our heads and witnessed another good thing! last week my dad had noticed that i killed off the plants we potted together in the spring, which sit on our porch. when we walked onto the porch, there were freshly potted flowers adding a burst of color! he dropped them off while we were at our birthing class – what a kind-hearted man! thank you daddio!

flowers

i have more goodness because my bestie alison flew out here from portland for my baby shower tomorrow (yay!) and i get to see my sister, grandparents, cousin, uncle and friends for it too! then ravery does his ironman on sunday! i’ll be on the snap for our adventurous weekend but so much goodness.

if you haven’t joined in already, you can sign up here to receive daily reminders of our #31DaysofKindness because we can all do little things that add up in a big way! with that, what goodness have you seen lately?

 

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10 Comments

  1. Rose

    August 5, 2016 at 12:27 am

    It was one of my besties birthday today so four of us went out for some food and drinks. I recently got a job that has given me some extra income. Instead of splitting the tab I picked it up. All of it. Not that I needed to pay it back but two of the ladies fed me when I was broke so I just wanted to treat everyone. It was nice to be in a position to make that happen.

    • chelsea

      August 5, 2016 at 8:23 am

      totally love that rose – what an amazing feeling to be able to spoil your friends without fretting about money! i have had that experience too and it feels so good to give back, especially to people that have helped you along the way!

  2. Jennifer Haston

    August 5, 2016 at 7:24 am

    Ah, Tangible kindness.. that is a good one! My tell “you something good” is my Day 4 yesterday.. had an utterly awesome moment with a coworker.. and as I sat in the breakroom, I listened to two ladies (who are both moms) find a common thread in their parenting styles.. they aren’t friends.. but witnessing a “moment of connection” like that.. so good.. loved it.. it reminded me of “being erica” (this show that is basically Quantum Leap for women.. Erica has problems and she goes back in time to “fix” her past.. LOVE THIS SHOW.. her doctor tells her in the midst of difficulty with a friendship.. “Friendship is born that moment that you look at someone and say, “what, you too?” It was so nice to see that.. (if you want to watch it.. you can look it up on youtube.. this episode is season 2 I think.. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1512519/– Best to you, mama! Enjoy your baby shower tomorrow! Our prenatal class is tomorrow and it’s a nice bonus cause I have tomorrow off (normally work Saturdays) so hello 3 day weekend.. that’s a lot of good! HUGS!

    • chelsea

      August 5, 2016 at 8:25 am

      how great that you got to witness their ‘moment of connection’ (fantastic phrase!) i haven’t seen ‘being erica’ i’ll have to try to check it out! thanks for the link to do so. have a fantastic prenatal class – we have LOVED ours and they have been so so helpful! enjoy that 3 day weekend too!

  3. Elyse@JustMurrayed

    August 5, 2016 at 8:02 am

    Love that pizza story! What an awesome reminder that even if you don’t think you have a lot, you do, and you can always be giving!

    I’m so glad you get to celebrate Bavery tomorrow with family and friends! Yay!

    I’ve been stuck inside for 2 days after accidentally eating gluten, so I haven’t seen much but I’m grateful that my husband is taking care of me and picked up the housework slack even though he’s working 12 hour days right now!
    Elyse@JustMurrayed recently posted…5 Books From My Childhood

    • chelsea

      August 5, 2016 at 8:26 am

      it was really incredibly to be bystanders and witness it!

      so sorry you have been sick for 2 days after eating gluten – how yucky! glad your husband is taking care of you and the house – get feeling better soon elyse!

  4. Audrey

    August 5, 2016 at 12:43 pm

    I love that story 🙂 Both stories, actually.
    I found out a few days ago that in addition to the dog sitter, both my mother-in-law AND my grandma were keeping an eye on my front porch flowers while we were on vacation! 🙂 Of course, I ended up being the one to let them die when we got home, lol.

    Sometimes it’s hard to remember what you have until you see someone that doesn’t have it. What a wonderful thing for the van-woman to do 🙂
    Audrey recently posted…You Are Great! (ep.1)

    • chelsea

      August 10, 2016 at 7:15 am

      that’s so sweet that your MIL and grandma were keeping an eye on your flowers too! glad i’m not alone in killing flowers…ha!

      it was such a great reminder to witness a small act of kindness have such a large impact on a family!

  5. chelsea jacobs

    August 6, 2016 at 4:19 pm

    I love this! Stories like this always motivate me to love out loud more often, because you never know who you’re going to inspire!
    chelsea jacobs recently posted…Make a Little Room for Wasted Time.

    • chelsea

      August 10, 2016 at 7:15 am

      i agree, chelsea! you really never do know who you are going to inspire and the ripple effect it shall have!