Published: September 16, 2007 12:24 am            

Simple act of kindness can go a long way

I love those moments in life where the most unsuspecting act of kindness lands right in your lap and you learn something profound from it.

On Friday, I experienced one of those moments — a simple gesture by a man who reminded me how much of a difference we can make if only we take the time to take our Christianity from our head and heart to our hands.

Fridays are usually hectic in the newspaper business, particularly at a small daily. This past Friday was no different.

One of the things I had hoped to accomplish during my busy day: find some fodder for this column at the grand opening of Best Buy at Meridian Crossroads. I wanted to write about how great the store was (because I’m a gadget freak). I wanted to write about how excited I was in the new development that will feature, among other things, a Petco and Ross. I wanted to write about our strong retail growth.

And I could have easily written about all of those things because they’re all true. But the direction of my column changed the moment I met a man named, “Tom.”

Tom had taken his lunch break to visit Best Buy, hoping to find a few good sales on televisions at the grand opening event. The rain was starting to come down as he pulled up in the parking lot in his work truck.

There, Web reporter Ben Lockridge and I stood trying to jump start Ben’s car battery. Ben called me shortly after I left the ribbon cutting, telling me he was stranded.

I didn’t have jumper cables, but I did have something even better: an automatic jumpstart kit, a present my parents got me for Christmas. The catch: those things don’t work too well if you’ve yet to take it out of the box and charge it. Yep, pretty useless.

So the both of us — two people who know very little about cars — stood in the rain and did what most people in those situations do: we stared blankly at the engine.

Meanwhile, Tom noticed our struggles and, even though he had very little time to visit the store on his lunch break, offered to jump off the car.

“I have jumper cables,” Tom said with a smile.

Tom then moved his truck in front of Ben’s car and began hooking up the cables — all while it was raining.

When Ben tried to crank it, the engine barely made a noise. We knew that meant we’d have to wait a minute or so while the battery charged. Tom never got impatient. When Ben said he was sorry it was taking so long, Tom said, “Don’t sweat it; no big deal.” He maintained a smile and remained relaxed and helpful throughout.

Eventually, Ben’s car started and Tom left. As we thanked him, he brushed off the gratitude as if it were no big deal.

As I left the store that day, I began to think: if everyone in life was as helpful, neighborly and generous as Tom, the world would be a much better place. I’m sure Tom wasn’t the first person with jumper cables to see Ben stranded that day. He was, however, the first to react and do something about it. I’m sure he had other things he’d rather be doing, but he took his time to help a fellow man.

So while I thought browsing the aisles at Best Buy would make my Friday, I was wrong. Tom’s simple act of kindness allowed me to catch a glimpse of the heart of God.



Fredie Carmichael is editor of The Meridian Star. E-mail him at fcarmichael@themeridianstar.com.

        

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