Wednesday, June 25, 2014

Princely Kindness

"Helping others isn't a chore; it is one of the greatest gifts there is."
― Liya Kebede

Years ago, I decided that it was no fun to run through an airport to catch a flight, so I stopped cutting it close and try mightily to give myself ample time to navigate airports.

But sometimes, things don't quite work out the way we plan.

On the way back home from a business trip, I gave myself 10 minutes more than the hotel personnel suggested for the cab ride to the airport.  But a bad accident on the highway prevented me from enjoying my ample time approach and had me worried that I would miss the flight.  That I was trying to make it home for one of my children's birthdays made things worse.  When my cab arrived at the airport, I jumped out and raced through the airport.  As I approached the security checkpoint, the young man checking IDs reached around the person in front of me to take my ID and boarding pass.  Then he announced that I had been selected for expedited screening, so I did not have to remove my shoes.  Incredulous, I thanked him profusely and told him he was a prince as I ran to the checkpoint.  Without my asking, the person ahead of me trying to get his bags through the screening machine waved me ahead of him, and off I went.  I made the flight.

* * *

When I was a child, there was a comic strip in the newspaper -- "Love is..." -- that my mother loved.  It was created by New Zealand artist Kim Grove. 

In that spirit...

Kindness is...  when two friends let you buy them a couple of gallons of milk at the drugstore after they realize that they have left the husband's wallet in the car.

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