mmmmmm.....it was just one of those moments that makes you feel all warm and tingly inside. Have you ever met one of those people that goes completely out of their way to serve someone else? Well, I had the pleasure of meeting one of those people tonight, someone who I feel is a true hero. However, before I begin my story, I'll set the scene. Every day at the University of Minnesota I travel to my classes in Minneapolis on the Campus Connector. This day was just like all the rest except the ride back to my dorm had an added element of excitement.
We were driving along the route, and suddenly, off to the side of the road I could see orange flashing lights. The bus driver immediately slowed down. As we got closer to the blinking lights, I could make out the silhouette of a man on a motorized scooter, but there was something wrong. The scooter was not moving; it had become wedged in a snowdrift. The bus driver pulled over to the side of the transit way and leaped out of the bus. I heard him warmly greet the elderly man that was stranded on the side of the road. I overheard the elderly man say that he had been patiently waiting for a good Samaritan to stop and rescue him, for about a half hour. The man must have been freezing as he watched vehicle after vehicle pass him by! The bus driver treated the man with such respect and visited with him as he began to push the man through the snow drift. But the bus driver did not stop pushing after the man was free of the drift, he pushed him down the whole block of slushy sidewalk! He went above and beyond what was expected of him. And no one on the bus was bothered by this unscheduled stop. We all just sat with smiles on our faces as the bus driver boarded the bus again, and we were on our merry way.
It's acts of kindness like these that pretty much keep the world turning. As FFA members we need to take the initiative and be "Go-Givers." We need to be willing to put ourselves last and others first. We need to offer others everything we could possibly give to them.
My goal before the end of the day is to do at least one great thing for another person, and I urge you to set a similar goal! Give of your time and talents to another person today, whether it be a stranger or a good friend. GIVE....and then, give some more!
Stationed by the flag,
Kirsten
Well Said! :)
ReplyDeleteGreat post Kristen! I would challenge you all to do great things, but also little things. Something that may be small and insignificant to you might mean a world of difference to someone else. So smile at a stranger, hold open the door for that new mom with the stroller, offer to help an elderly person carry their tray to their table. A second out of your day may mean everything to them.
ReplyDeleteStationed by the flag (in 2001!)
Mamie :)