The Kindness in a Quarter

"Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around."
~ Leo Buscaglia

Recently, I had a conversation with a woman in her 70s, the grandmother of one of my children's friends.  She shared a beautiful story.  In 1972, she was going through a difficult time.  One day, she went to buy a newspaper to look for a job.  The newspaper, which was in one of those newspaper vending machines, cost a quarter, but she only had a dollar.  She asked a gentleman who also was buying a newspaper whether he had change for the dollar.  He said no, but gave her the quarter.  She said that she remembers it because it was such a kind thing to do and it felt like so much more.  "It was as if he had faith in me," she recalled.  And during that period in her life, that gesture took on important meaning.  She still remembers that kindness more than 40 years later.