ptquilts

when I was a teenager I worked in a drugstore part time. (small family owned store). The owner/druggist had mentioned that some of the older folks in the area came in to buy a paper, just to have someone to talk to. So whenever I had a customer I always smiled and said Hi, how are you - realizing it might be the only human contact they had that day. I guess nowadays I would be an UNtypical teenager.

It was a nice store - they had a chair where you could sit and wait while your scrip was filled - one old guy from the neighborhood used to come in, sit down and have a nap. No one ever kicked him out.

karen924

THANK YOU FOR STARTING THIS THREAD! I always seem to have a big cart at the store and it seems that I'd be rude to make someone wait when they only have a couple of items. So, Yes, I let others ahead of me all the time. I remember as a child when we'd have to go thru a toll booth, my Mom would pay for the person behind her...it was so much fun for so little money. nowadays that isn't an option where I've lived. So making faces at babies, offering to hold a baby ( in quilt shop only) and randomly giving to others is just fun. Sometimes all I need to make my day is a smile from a stranger. I also like to give out random compliments to strangers...everyone needs to feel special.

Peckish

My husband travels a lot for his job, and any time he sees a soldier on a plane, he uses his points and miles to upgrade that soldier to first class.

Maggiesmom

For the past year or so I have been helping a family meet some everyday kind of needs for their children (all teenagers). Even though both worked, a layoff of weeks followed by a lower paying job for husband and a very limited part-time job for the wife plus medical bills for the whole family had put them in a rather desperate position. They were barely able to put a roof over their heads. So my husband and I often helped with extra food and clothing. In turn she wanted to help me knowing zi had some difficulty in doing things like mopping floors etc. So she came each week to mop floors and change the bed and clean bathrooms. When we had the fire this summer and a cleaning crew from Service Master came to clean up they needed extra help. I recommended my friend for a helper. She started with the crew on my house and this has worked into a full-time job for her which had looked for many months. They love her and she has been able to save enough to rent a house (were living in one room-5 people) just this week and move her family in. While I miss her help with my cleaning, I am so happy for her and for the first time in about three years they are certain to have happy holidays. We continue to be friends and I have gotten her started on quilting too.

wildyard

Not long ago while in a Salvation Army store, a man was trying on boots as I was also. He had the appearance of a homeless person, but I don't know that for sure. He had found a good pair of warm boots and was so excited that they fit. They were marked $9 but he only had $4. He tried to talk them into lowering the price, but the cashier said she wasn't allowed to. He sadly brought them back and put them on the shelf. Putting back on his raggedy sneakers he laughed and said, boy I thought I was gonna have me some warm feet this winter. I gave him the rest of the money he needed to buy those boots, telling him I thought warm feet this winter was a really good idea. He thanked me over and over and left with those boots on his feet, a happy man. I didn't get to buy the boots I found, but that's ok, because I can always find another pair. Plus, my old ones still keep my feet warm. They are old, but they still work!

wildyard

Awesome thing to do!! Isn't helping someone to help themselves the best help you can ever give?

lillybeck

Great post. We always try to do something for someone when we are out and about. So many have done small things for us like this and we just pass it on

quiltmau

I have always liked the PIF idea. I was raised to do such.
I regularly buy meals for servicemen when I see then in the restaurant-I am ex Navy and my DH is ex Air Force. Full cart and a few items-the few go first. I hold doors for all-young, old -doesn't matter. Let traffic go ahead-no brainer.
I lived overseas (Australia) and found that the common manners I was raised with were a matter of custom. I love small towns as the people there seem to still believe in the old customs and in helping others.
In this time of crisis I hope that the spirit of the people of the US reaches out to others and we all remember that we are in this together and a few minutes or dollars of our time may be a life saver to others.
Do unto others as you have them do unto you!

1234Irene

When my daughter was about 3 or 4, we had to take her fathers greasers to the laundry mat. I stopped and got her a happy meal to eat while I did the laundry. While she was eating, an elderly man walks in. I notice him watching my daughter eat. I admit it made me nervous. Anyway, when our clothes were done, I went back to mcdonalds and bought a super sized big Mac deal, and returned to the laundry mat to give it to the man. He actually started crying, then told me he was homeless, and hasn't eaten in 3 days!

fayzer

We go shopping at Eglin Air Force Base every week. I often buy coffee at the Starbucks at the Food Court. When I go to pay, I tell the barista that I want to prepay for a Venti coffee for the next military member that orders coffee wearing their uniform. Today, the barista was a young man I had never seen. He looked me in the eyes and grasp my hand with both of his and said Thank you so much. He made sure all the other employees knew to give that free cup of coffee to the next uniform at the counter. I love doing that. I never know who gets the coffee but it is fun to surprise a soldier/airman.