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| Paying it forward!!!!
Posted: 8/11/2005 10:44:40 PM | Well yesterday morning as I was going through the timmies drive through listening to the radio, I looked into my rearview mirror and noticed this woman in her suv, she was cute and well just out of the blue as I pulled up to the window collected my coffee and then asked how much the womans order behind me came to. So I decided what the hell, as a good gesture I would pay for her order not in hopes of getting anything in return but just for the thought that I may have put a smile on anothers face. So I told the clerk I will cover her bill and if she asked why I payed for her order I said to just tell her "Just Because". It was a good will gesture as it made me fell good and I am sure it was a good surprise for her as well!
So what good gesture have you done for a complete stranger lately????? | |
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| Paying it forward!!!!
Posted: 8/12/2005 12:08:34 AM | | I had a couple of rare books that, frankly, I didn't really want anymore. I had been contacted by a person expressing interest in the books, so I called him up and said that I needed his address. He made an offer on the books, but I turned him down and said he could have them for free. I wish I could have done it without revealing who I was, but he lived in New York and I'm in California so I really didn't have his address. | |
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| Paying it forward!!!!
Posted: 8/12/2005 12:32:37 AM | 
Awesome thread Viper...... i would like to share....not sure if same, but....
Recently, I cared for a 7 year old patient diagnosed with Leukemia and total spine mets only 2 months ago and only an 8 week chance to live. He has been receiving chemo and radiation DAILY for @ 6 weeks now and sadly continued to progress to worse. He never cried, always smiled.
Since this time, his mother is now single (father/husband left her and HIM due to son's illness); has lost her job; her home and basically her sanity yet continued to be optimistic of a miracle. She cried; his older brother of 9 did too. However this boy never cried, always smiled.
He and I had a conversation that his only wish is for his mom and brother to go on and be happy. This of
course, tore me apart... He asked me if there is a way to "help" his family, can I sell my toys he asked, what can I do to help he asked....I told him to focus on getting better; keep fighting, that's what he could do!!!
He then thanked me for talking to him and called me HIS angel and, I, in turn gave him my angel pin I have
worn for years to let him know we, I would always be there....in all this time he continued to smile; never cried and kept his spirit up.
In the meantime, I researched how to help; gave what I could and found someone who has not only given a
home to the mother and son, but also the mother a job...the boy who never cries and always smiles was
soooooooooooo happy for his mom and brother...that day, he smiled AND he cried.
Sadly, the boy that always smiled and never cried (but this once I know of) has lost his battle today....
Yet, in a letter from him...he expressed his concern to make others happy...therefore today, all his toys have been donated to children who are "falling" from this dreadful disease of cancer...his only hope, these toys will bring some kind of joy to them before they leave this world...
His mother and brother have expressed the utmost appreciation and asked how can they help.....I responded with "pay it forward"....do something and support like you've never known and maybe, they may just find.....another boy who only smiles and does not cry....and will be able "pay it forward" for another....
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| Paying it forward!!!!
Posted: 8/12/2005 1:07:23 AM | WOW JacqiO that was a very heart felt story, I almost cried just reading it. It was a great loss especialy when it comes to a loss of a child to cancer or anything of that matter. But he sounded like a brave young man and he shall be remembered as such in your heart and the heart of every one who reads your post!
So your kindness was payed forward to the Mother and her son's!
My hat is off to you!!!!!!! | |
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| Paying it forward!!!!
Posted: 8/12/2005 2:16:35 AM | I had a girl interview for me last week for a position. She didn't qualify in many regards and didn't have the proper paper work to work in Canada. When I expressed this to her she had a sad look in her eyes so talked to her about it. She has been in Canada for three months, ran out of money, had no friends and was hungry. The only people she had met had ripped her off for money and she was lonely.
I took her to McDonalds, Loblaws for groceries and then home. I gave her $20 and told her that if she needs someone to help her out over the next while to let me know.
I am going to be helping her get the paperwork she needs to get a job and also jazz up her resume so she can work while going to school. | |
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| Paying it forward!!!!
Posted: 8/12/2005 2:40:28 AM | | Viper1, What in the heck did it matter that she was 'cute' if it was just a good gesture? | |
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| Paying it forward!!!!
Posted: 8/12/2005 4:31:24 AM | I took the little girl that live upstairs with her mother to the store & bought all of her new school supplies for her.... | |
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| Paying it forward!!!!
Posted: 8/12/2005 4:57:18 AM | | It's not always money or material support that gives someone a boost. I recently had a complicated problem that took the customer service representative some time to get worked out. When everything was finished, I asked to speak to her supervisor. She immediately thought that there was a problem and was surprised to hear that I simply wanted to praise her for her professional attitude and courteous service. The supervisor was even surprised when I complimented the worker. I know that put a smile on both their faces. People in public service seem to always hear about it when someone is not happy. So I go out of my way to say something positive whenever I can. | |
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| Paying it forward!!!!
Posted: 8/12/2005 8:07:49 AM | You know those shopping carts that you have to put money into, in order to 'unlock' it from the rest, at the grocery store??
I found that so often, I did NOT have the correct change with me, so became a silly struggle of running into the store for change, back out to the cart, etc. If I only had my bank card, and no cash, than I had to get that first, before I could get the change, etc.
As a single parent, this used to really irritate me....half the time, I would never remember to pack change for the cart....
So as of years ago (even during my brokest days! lol!) I decided to start leaving the money in the cart....so it would remain unlocked, for the next hapless shopper that came along with no change.
Since we've been doing that (I've explained the whole concept to my son) there have been many times when I too, have found a cart, unlocked, money still inside. .......like a little gift. lol..... | |
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| Paying it forward!!!!
Posted: 8/12/2005 12:50:52 PM | | CH, now that's cool. It is like I've said, sometimes it is the little things that bring a smile to someone's face. I'm just glad we don't have those kind of shopping carts here, or I'd always be doing the scramble for cash then change! | |
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Viper1
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Joined: 6/13/2005
Msg: 11 | |
| Paying it forward!!!!
Posted: 8/12/2005 9:54:40 PM | Well if we all did something nice for a complete stranger I am sure the world would be a great place, but we tend to stray from helping unless there is something in it for us, but to those who do it with out selfish thought my hat is off to you!!!! | |
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| Paying it forward!!!!
Posted: 8/13/2005 6:10:50 AM | Tolls, it's all about the tolls. Pay for the person behind you; it always makes their day! (although it maybe decreases highway safety because they always speed to catch up to smile and wave.) | |
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Viper1
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Joined: 6/13/2005
Msg: 13 | |
| Paying it forward!!!!
Posted: 8/13/2005 6:28:58 AM | | LOL yeah well I made sure I had a hell of a lead and besides she was on her way to work and I was on my way home so I kinda had a good chance of getting away....lol | |
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| Paying it forward!!!!
Posted: 8/13/2005 8:58:23 AM | | jacqiO's story was amazing, as well as very well told (it takes a lot to move me), and i do think doing something nice for others does make the world a better place. i'm just not sure if i really believe in the idea of the "self-less act". the way i see it, even when we think that's what we're doing, there IS something in it for us: the satisfaction we get from doing it. this by no means is a bad thing... just that there IS something in it for the person helping out the other. | |
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| Paying it forward!!!!
Posted: 8/13/2005 2:41:59 PM | what a wonderful thread,...I hope there are many people who will be moved as I was reading the story from jacqiO and others,...
here is one from me,....
A few years ago and one month to the day befor Christmas,....my son's and I had a house fire in which we lost everything except what was on our backs,..... We had very little at the time as this was about 8 months after my husband traded his 40 year old wife (me) in for 2 twenty year olds,... after the fire I took my boys (then 12 and 14) over to my husbands (a sub sub specialist physician) office to hopefully get some money from him to replace the clothes that were on our backs as they were now permiated of smoke, when we wnet through the place to survey the loss after the fire was put out,....
He refused to give the boys anything because he didn't think I would pay him back,...he did however manage to get a court order preventing the insurance company from paying me anything untill it was decided how much of the insurance proceeds would come to him,....
This was the response from someone I thought should be there to help us,...I mention this only because I learned some very valuable lessons from this event,...what giving truely is,..
It came in the form of a friends who I had thought of as a casual friends,...they were the parents of one of my son's best friend,.....
She knocked on my door one day out of the blue and told me to step aside as she brought in several boxes of food,...and some gifts for my boys,....she didn't ask what I wanted or needed she just knew,..and got it for us,...actually her church did,...
I found out that her church who did not even have an actual building in which to hold their service,..but rented the school auditorium every sunday,....took the money they collected each week and would purchase what was needed by people of their congregation or their friends,.....
During the many months that we lived at a hotel while our home was being re-built I remember many people who,..knowing of our situation would tell me "if there is anything I can do don't hesitate to call",....I'm sure I have said the same thing over the years to people I have known but the truth is,.... the needy,.....tend not to ask,....I know I never did,....and I never would have,....
It's when you give what you know someone needs without being asked,... that the gift is truely from the heart,....Neither I nor my children have ever forgotten this lesson,....
As the ex wife of a doctor no one would ever hold a telethon for me,...they would assume that we have everything we could ever want or need,....but appearances are often missleading,....
That Chrismas,...all over town there were people collecting money, toys, and food, for the poor and the needy,....and here I was the wife of a doctor with no way of making Christmas happen for my own sons,.... all the gifts I had bought for them went up in flames and with no job,..savings,..or even support payments,...and an insurance company that was prohibited from paying me anything,....what could I do?
Now I know we all hate insurance companies and expect the worst when something happens and we find ourselves at their mercy,..but insurance companies have people that work for them and sometimes they are good people,...The claims adjuster had no reason to be an advocate for me once the court order hit his desk,...but unbeknownst to me he went to bat for me and on the 24 of december just before noon he came with a check for me that he managed to push through his powers to be,...
My son's knew that there would be no Christmas for them that year,..they were old enough to understand,..and still young enough to hope,...so when they were out with friends that afternoon I went out and got them Christmas,....
The hotel we were staying in had given me a key to a room an empty that had a kitchen in it because they closed off the restaurant for the holidays,....and in this room I decorated a tree,...and the room,...cooked a turkey for our dinner and set up the gifts I got for them,...
They were completely taken by surprise when the next morning (Christmas day ) we headed to this room to have breakfast,....
There were no gifts from their father that year or even his mother their Grandmother,..had it not been for the kindness of an insurance broker,...there would have been no Christmas for them that year as they had expected,....and to me the greatest gift of all the availability to make this miracle happen for my boys,....I will never forget this kindness,....
Today whenever I know that there is a need (I NEVER SAY IF THERE IS ANYTHING I CAN DO) instead,.....I do my very best,...to also
PAY IT FORWARD,..... | |
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Viper1
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Joined: 6/13/2005
Msg: 16 | |
| Paying it forward!!!!
Posted: 8/14/2005 11:56:43 PM | | These are all great stories, and I am glad you all shared them! Thanks! | |
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| Paying it forward!!!!
Posted: 8/15/2005 2:46:38 AM | I **** slapped my 23 year old friend for calling me elderly...........
hey if I didnt do that ...he wouldnt have a chance of fulfilling his fantasy on 30 something ladies.... | |
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| Paying it forward!!!!
Posted: 8/15/2005 3:01:27 AM | jacquiO...Its so wonderful to know there are people like you. I have shared many experiences in nursing similar to yours. Children have a way of dying with grace and can leave that lasting warm smile that is forever with you. I had a patient that was the bravest little boy I have ever met. No matter what he endured from pain he always had a smile and never wanted those that loved him to cry. To be so young they have love that is far beyond their years. It changes our lives and helps us to see the world differently. Thank you for sharing this story. It touched me deeply. Your compassionate heart carries you with grace.  | |
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| Paying it forward!!!!
Posted: 8/15/2005 9:59:27 PM | Ty^^^^^ Angelic....**bows to you and considers it the utmost compliment....just everyone has a different way of "pay it forward"....and that above was mine....
ty...to those who read it....ty for the opportunity to let it out....
again...Viper..... | |
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| Paying it forward!!!!
Posted: 8/15/2005 10:09:07 PM | | This past weekend I was on the bus coming back from Toronto, and I was sharing my seat with this little boy...must've been the oldest out of four children travelling alone with their mother...We make a pit-stop for supper and everyone gets off...I decide not to go seeing as the line-ups in the restaurants would be nuts...and stay on. The kids start getting anxious. They want McDonald's, their thirsty, they're tired, etc. I offer to show the oldest boy the bathroom with the mother's permission, then we wait in line, I buy each of the kids a meal and nearly miss the bus with that kid. lol Does it count as a good deed if I got something out of it? (Peace and quiet!) The mother kind of looked at me like, "Um, is it okay to give my kids this food?" haha. Before she could say anything I told her, "They're a pleasure to travel with." | |
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| Paying it forward!!!!
Posted: 10/7/2005 12:18:05 PM | | It may not seem like much, but I try (though don't always succeed) to lift the day of people I meet. A smile, a hello, and even a conversation. It can be a challenge sometimes - grumpy store clerks, or someone who's facing a line of irate people to deal with. But it's possible and I'll admit a little self-satisfaction creeps in when it succeeds in particularly trying circumstances. If you need a payoff, I've had unsolicited airline upgrades and even offers of a date. | |
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| Paying it forward!!!!
Posted: 10/7/2005 2:59:54 PM | | It may work for some people.But it has never worked for me.I could write a book on this..I do believe in fate.In other words some people can treat people like crap.And those people will worship the ground they walk on.And there can be another group of people that treat them like gold,Just to get shi--ed on.They careless.I have observed this all my life....This is why i am single.Women will tell me they want a nice well mannered guy.But when the first lazy woman beater comes along she cannot wait to worship the ground he walks on....And do not tell me this type of person is nice.Either a person is nice or mean.Their is no middle....Women seem to think their is...AS a result i gave up on this dating crap when i turned 30.I rather be alone.So much happier....I will let the next fool deal with it....I also had to find out the hard way what a woman say and do are 2 totally different things...... | |
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| Paying it forward!!!!
Posted: 10/7/2005 6:51:02 PM | | One time when I worked as a****ail waitress, I was off duty and having some drinks. A friend of mine was working, and she had a table full of jerks. They sat at her table for hours, were very rude to her, and made her run her butt off. They finally left, and left no tip on the table. I put a $10 on the table when she wasn't looking, and when she cleared it, she came over to me, telling me how she thought they were the biggest creeps on earth, and she was so surprised they left her that much! It totally brightened her night, and mine too. | |
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| Paying it forward!!!!
Posted: 10/7/2005 10:48:56 PM | Three years ago, I found out I had to have an emergency hysterecomy three weeks before Christmas. I was in college, couldn't work, no money, no child support coming in, & there we were...
I'm on a huge board of women that are world wide & a very close group. I got an email from Santa D & thought wth?! It said Merry Christmas to the hunklets * I & go check the mail. On Dec. 1st, a box arrived, full of 1yr old goodies. Every single day until Christmas that year, a box came, & they were everywhere!
I've always been one to give & do for others, but found that year that sometimes the most wonderful present you can give is accepting that others want to help & care for you/me... when we need it & accept it gracefully & w/ a thankful heart.
They were my very own Christmas angels.
I love paying it forward.
I like going to resturaunts & paying for someone's meal before they see me, esp..a little man or woman that have seen so much life & look so alone sitting there. Paying $2-3 on a tired mom's groceries that is behind me in the grocery store... I love knowing it was done w/o acknowlegdement-I don't need a pat on the head... | |
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| Paying it forward!!!!
Posted: 10/8/2005 6:29:20 AM | I have been reading this and remembering. I had a son who too was an amazing child. He was diagnosed with a rare cancer at the age of 4 1/2. I had just split up with his dad a few months before. Through the custody fight, lawyers meetings, the divorce, the rumors my ex's family was spreading and all the chemo, scans, tests, my son always made sure he could bring a smile to my face.
We had 7 years mostly on treatment and I never seen him cry til the end. We lost that amazing child a year ago this past August. He had touched sooo many hearts with his attitude and determination that at his funeral we had over 700 people go through. He was a spokesperson for Cops for Cancer during his whole battle with the dreaded disease and in return they held an honour guard for him during the extent of his funeral .... was awesome.
Another friend had decided to go and raise some money for a plaque dedicated to my son and how he lived. After all the crap I had to put up with through all those years all I tend to remember now is how Jake handled life and lived it to the fullest ... every day was a new adventure. If I can bring that attitude to others and share a piece of him with all around who need it (hmmm think we all need it) then I feel I am doing justice to his memory.
He taught me soo much about how to live and deal with people, it feels good to pass it along to others. He taught me that no matter what the day looks like outside you need to look for the sunshine.
Sooo for all of you out there !!!!! I hope that this brief (LOL) letter helps your outlook a lilltle bit ..... life isn't always doom n gloom... it's a matter of choice on how you look at it.
wild | |
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