A Year of Being Kind blog – Sunday, April 6, 2014
Being Kind—Telling People Stuff
Tomorrow is the day. The day the contractor comes and starts deconstructing our bathroom. Well, not really down to the studs in the walls, but he will pull down the old, tired tile. I’m excited!
I found a medicine cabinet today. Finally! I have been looking for two weeks, and was really dissatisfied about ninety percent of the ones I saw. Scratch that—about two thirds of the ones I saw were absolutely unsuitable for our bathroom because of A) the size of the cabinet. Most of those left I couldn’t use because of B) the color of the trim. At last, I found one that would A) fit the space and B) had a usable silver edging. Success!
But that wasn’t the most fulfilling part of today. (Not that there weren’t several, other, fulfilling parts. There were!) No, one of the most enjoyable parts for me was a conversation I fell into, when I was in the do-it-yourself store. In the bathroom section while I was waiting for an associate to help me, a couple with a young toddler came pushing a cart down the aisle. They were looking for some bathroom fixtures.
The wife had a sincere question, and asked her husband. She stood, arms crossed, finger on her chin, frowning at the vanity in question.
Since I have been researching and looking at vanities and fixtures for the past two weeks myself, I knew the answer to her question. I excused myself for overhearing her. I gave them a quick, cordial response. Including the answer. They were both so pleased! And, they thanked me. The husband followed up with several other questions, and we had a brief, entertaining conversation. (I also admired their toddler. Adorable!)
If I hadn’t been searching for (and learning about) bathroom fixtures recently, I wouldn’t have known about the answer to this woman’s question. Sure, I suspect she and her husband could have waited for the store clerk to come along, but then we never would have fallen into such a pleasant conversation.
This is another instance of my being helpful. Not intentionally helpful, I don’t think. I mean, I did not go over the possibilities step-by-step in my brain ahead of time. But my intuition was urging me to go up to this woman. So, I did. As this urge, this feeling happened, I reacted. And went, and opened my mouth. Now sometimes, I just end up putting my foot in my mouth! Not this time, though.
God, I think this was altruistic action. Kindness in motion. And I think You were pleased because I’m trying to put my kindness to work. I took the opportunity to tell people stuff. And I had a great conversation with them, too. I could have totally missed this chance. I’m glad I didn’t turn away, and I’m glad I listened to my intuition. Or, was it Your Holy Spirit giving me a nudge? I wonder.
@chaplaineliza
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