I think it is no secret that I am a skeptical, cynical, curmudgeonly pessimist. I've been known to utter the phrase "I hate people." because, well, I sometimes hate people in general. However, a small, but impactful event recently reminded that not everyone out there is a jackass.
Friday night found the family and a friend hanging out at the Barnes and Noble in Bowie, MD. We were feeding Grace at the Cafe (she just loves her mocha lattes) and she was being a little fussy. I try to be aware when the girl is loud (especially in a bookstore) because I am sensitive to the other patrons who don't necessarily find a wailing baby to be the perfect accompaniment to their coffee break. When Grace calmed down and completed her feeding I left her with mom and started browsing. I'll paraphrase the exchange I had with another customer because, though I've tried, I can't remember exactly what he said:
Older Gentleman: "Are you the dad?"
Me: (Immediately thinking he's going to give me a hard time about the noise.) "Yes."
OG: (Handing me a Barnes and Noble bag.) "Then consider this a gift from a stranger. You have a lovely family. Enjoy your baby."
Me: barely able to get out a stunned "Thank You."
After showing Amanda the gift, which was a small gift set from the book Guess How Much I Love You, we both went over and thanked him again and spoke with him (and his wife and granddaughter) for a bit. He simply said he was a grandfather who loved kids and that having babies around brought great joy (or something like that). I told him that gestures like his helped restore my faith in people. A brief exchange to be sure, but one that will stick with me for a long time. And one that hopefully I can use as a teaching moment with Grace one day. Sometimes, no matter how many amazing people you have in your life, it takes a stranger to shine a light on what's really important. Thank you, Sir.
6 comments:
thank you. that made me smile, and by default, i feel much better about people and this world too.
brent
i still think people in general (that is to say that 99.9% of the worlds population) suck ass. im glad this single act of kindness totally reaffirmed your faith in all of humanity. im sure the somali pirates read this and felt bad and decided to turn their lives around. all the death row inmates in america too....sorry sarcasm got out of hand there.
killer
That's a great little story.
Also, fwiw, I've never believed you when you say "I hate people". I've heard you say it, but I've never heard you say it with any sense of malice; it's usually more like you feel sorry for people that are too stupid for their own good.
But you don't Hate People.
st4rbux-You're right, usually I say it for effect, though I'm sure I could grow to hate some of the folks that piss me off were I exposed to them long term. As my wife likes to remind me-how can I hate someone that I don't even know?.
I am with killer. I still think people suck.
Now I think I'm going to have to be a little more patient before saying that I hate people.
Just a little. LOL Great story buddy. Thanks for sharing. It is interesting that a stranger is sometimes the loudest advocate for tolerance and the delivery of kindness.
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