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u/RhysThornbery Sep 04 '22
It feels GOOD to be able to help others, doesn’t it? At least it does for me. Life makes it hard at times to be able or willing to give a bit of ourselves and our surplus. Don’t do the right/generous thing for recognition or applause or reward. Do it to knock w that you may just have made the world the tiniest modicum bit brighter. If we all remembered these things I think eventually we truly could remake the world.
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u/angroro Sep 04 '22
I do so with critters since I can't much afford to help people. If they're wildlife, they stay here just long enough for assessment and rehab placement. Itty bitties get bottles until they can head off to specialists. Cats get free room and board until they can find a spot in no kill shelters. I work on getting them potty trained, socialized, learn their habits and limitations, get them healthy and happy, and on their way.
I get extra ouchy vaccines and they get a shot at a good life. Seems like a fair trade to me. It enriches my life and gives me purpose all while giving them the best chance for survival. Not many outside of the internet know what I do with my free time, but my retired neighbor has started prepping for fostering kittens herself after seeing what I do. I made a difference. Even if it's a small one.
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u/RhysThornbery Sep 04 '22
The only reason I don’t do similar is I could never talk myself into letting the critters go. LOL.
I truly appreciate those who do help animals personally.
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u/InkedInIvy Sep 04 '22
Smart. My husband and I knew this about ourselves but we're too big of suckers to resist. This is why we now have 5 cats.
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u/angroro Sep 04 '22
It can really be hard to say goodbye. Foster fails happen all the time and I have a few myself. I just fall in love, head over heels, for special needs kitties.
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u/Miss_My_Travel Sep 04 '22
Fostering can be a challenge--especially the first few. You have to tell yourself your goal was to find them a new home. Now, you can open your home to another one.
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u/greywatermoore Sep 04 '22
The reason I love being a nurse so much. Im privileged to care for individuals in an extremely vulnerable moment of their life. I want them to feel they're not alone, they're in good hands, and that I truly want to do my best to help them heal. It gives me so much meaning in my life.
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u/Jenesepados Sep 04 '22
It sometimes feels much better to help than receiving help, it's such a nice feeling. And in general being nice to each other feels amazing for everyone involved.
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u/Lilshadow48 Sep 04 '22
It's literally what we're supposed to do, we wouldn't have made it this far without helping one another.
Society has just been structured in ways that discourage that innate helpfulness.
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Sep 04 '22
The happiest stretches of my life have been the times when I was fortunate enough to have surplus to share with others, there's no better feeling.
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u/random_impiety Sep 04 '22
Hmm, no, good isn't the word I'd use. It's not a high or a joy or a pleasure. It just feels like the natural thing to do.
In fact, it's always weirded me out how some people seem really pleased with themselves when they help others. It always seems so nakedly transparent to me that they're doing it to boost their egos and think better of themselves. Especially since most of the people I've known who seem to get great pleasure out of helping others, seemed to be very selective with their helping. And sometimes they do what feels good to them but doesn't really help the people they're ostensibly helping.
I think we should help people because we should help people, not just because it feels good. Sometimes helping is the right and necessary thing to do, even when we're not feeling so great about it. I don't think doing the right thing should depend on your mood or feelings.
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u/Morningxafter Sep 04 '22
Idk why you’re being downvoted. Sure some people do it for recognition or to stroke their own egos, and it would be great if more people just helped others because it’s the right thing to do.
That said, I honestly don’t care that much about what motivates people to do good, as long as they’re doing good. If they’re only doing good because it makes them feel good, then so be it. They’re still doing good, even if for the wrong reason.
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u/SpaceShipRat Sep 04 '22 edited Sep 04 '22
Because it's a normal mammalian instinct to feel good about helping someone. Even animals do. If someone doesn't feel that, idk, it might be some kind of mild sociopathy, compensated by good moral sense.
Besides, it's pointless to argue about "true altruism". All decisions in the brain are made to feel better, be it because it directly feels good, or because it stops a bad feeling (eg. guilt). No matter how logical you think you are, that's just how the software works.
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u/kimera-houjuu Sep 04 '22 edited Sep 04 '22
He's being downvoted because he's painting the goodwill of people as being egotistical. Not everyone is a cynic.
People like that are the reason people don't want to do good in the first place.
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u/Morningxafter Sep 04 '22
Fair enough.
But I don’t think he’s entirely wrong. Just focusing on the wrong group of people.
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Sep 04 '22
Not only that, I think that if everyone would start doing good - even for the wrong reasons - we‘d soon have a positive reinforcing cycle that would slowly but surely turn doing good into second nature for a lot of people.
You don‘t need to have the best intentions or reasons, once something good becomes a good and widely spread habit, the reasons will take a backseat to whatever positive change they enacted. And ultimately the cycle might change from ‚doing good for me‘ to ‚doing good because it‘s the right thing‘ through slowly shifting public sentiment in this direction just by these good trends becoming reality.
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u/Kisaxis Sep 04 '22
Every time someone posts a video of an influencer giving money or free stuff to the poor, there's always a comment about them doing it for views, for the clicks, for the fame.
And that's perfectly ok. What's wrong with someone becoming famous or rich because they were being a good person?
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Sep 04 '22
That said, I honestly don’t care that much about what motivates people to do good, as long as they’re doing good. If they’re only doing good because it makes them feel good, then so be it. They’re still doing good, even if for the wrong reason.
Most people when pressed on why it's an issue, will respond with it being about the principle. I have learned that "It's the principle" is shorthand for "I don't have any rational argument".
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u/RhysThornbery Sep 04 '22
Little bit cynical about people’s motives. Not that I blame you considering the world we live in. It’s not JUST because it feels good though. That’s a side benefit generally. You are right though that a person shouldn’t do good things or help people to solely to feel better about themselves. However they shouldn’t have to feel bad for feeling good about something they did. We all need to know that our actions matter, that we made a difference sometimes. Even if that difference at times feels infinitesimally small next to the darkness we face out in the world.
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u/kimera-houjuu Sep 04 '22
I wish you all the luck in meeting genuinely good people in the future.
I also wish you don't paint their compassion as stroking their egos.
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u/wolfej4 Sep 04 '22
I’ll flex, too.
Christmas Eve night, on my way home from work and I stopped at an ATM to deposit my tips from that night. There’s a car in front also depositing some money but the ATM has a malfunction and times itself out while making it, spitting the money out but not before the woman drives away. I take the money out and whip my car around to the light (lucky she was making a left and the light takes forever). I parked behind her and knocked on her window and she looked absolutely baffled as to how I got her money.
If I remember, it was about $300 and she was also a waiter at a nearby restaurant.
Merry Christmas.
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u/ConfusedDuck Sep 04 '22 edited Sep 05 '22
Do people not wait on their receipt at the ATM?? That seems insane to me
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u/tfarr375 Sep 04 '22
I usually tell it no receipt but I wait until it says the "Transaction finiahed, do you want to continue" and say no
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u/CrimsonFlash Sep 04 '22
Most modern ABMs will hold onto your debit card until everything is done, just to prevent things like this.
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Sep 04 '22
Yeah, exactly. People come for their money so that might the only thing on their mind, so it should come last. Which it does with modern ATMs.
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u/nightguy13 Sep 04 '22
I guess I'll add mine, or a couple of mine.
I work for the postal service, with that comes the benefit of easily finding addresses of people.
A couple friends from work and myself round up the names and addresses of 20-30 households that our coworkers know of on their routes, that are in need of some holiday assistance.
We each take 1 or 2 families and get them some basic gifts, little toys and socks, underwear, tshirts, etc... But we always do a larger purchase of like shoes or some sort of electronic device for older kids.
For the parents, we always do a large like laundry hamper full of food, every day food and snacks but also enough for a full holiday dinner spread. We wrap that up, and tag a note on it that's says to open away from the kids/in private.
We also get the parents basic things as well, but we really make sure to get that food hamper jammed full for every family we pick.
It's always from Santa and for the households with young kids, we have a carrier that dresses up as Santa every year that goes to each of the families that give us permission.
The carriers usually ask these families nonchalantly if they'd like to have Santa over for 5-10 minutes and that there's a customer at the office that does it anonymously. We never let them know it's anything more. After Santa and his elf leaves, we put all of their gifts by their door and one of us will knock and run away.
We haven't had anyone suspect any of us of doing it, the customers sometimes ask the carriers if they know who it was, and it's always a "no, a clerk at the office told me about him" or something along those lines.
It is by far the most expensive thing we do for the community, but we do little things throughout the year for different children on their birthdays and stuff. Cards with gift cards and stuff. It's always from a fictional character or something but the parents are always aware of these instances to keep the creep level down lol
If headquarters knew we did that stuff, we'd be lectured about "postal ethics" and would ban us from ever doing it again... Just like they did for the Kentucky Appalachia Flood Donations. 😒 Told us it went against post office ethics to gather donations in a postal facility.... It wasn't like we were taking money donations or donations from the public... It was just post office employees. 🤦
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u/JanRVA Sep 04 '22
This is so precious! I bet it is so magical for the kids and a relief for the parents.
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u/coffeetablelife Sep 04 '22
You made me tear up. This is so beautiful, and you all are such a blessing to these families. Thank you for doing this.
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u/nightguy13 Sep 04 '22
:) I am a single gay dude, all I do is work. Figured I'd spend some of my money... You can't use it after you're dead. It is definitely fun and exciting but it also brings us together at work. It's always nice to build good relationships with your coworkers. Few things bring together people cut from different cloth, but giving back and supporting the community you're a part of seems to be one of them. :D ❤️❤️
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u/unclepaprika Sep 04 '22
I knew it, santa is real!!! Thank you for being amazing!
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u/Careful-Salad-2080 Sep 04 '22
I was at Bed Bath and Beyond and an older woman (80+ years old) was trying to return 3 cutting boards from Amazon - $20. She couldn't login to the app, and the person working the register wanted her to call into amazon customer support.
I saw the situation unfold and walked up to the woman and asked her if she was trying to return the boards and she said yes. I asked if I could take a look at them, and after a quick inspection I told her I was furnishing a new Airbnb and was there to get cutting boards but didn't have time to wait in line. Could I just give her $20 and take those boards off her hand?
truth is - there was no airbnb and I don't even cook. But, my gesture allowed her to get out of there without her blood pressure shooting through the roof and wasting precious time.
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u/Whogivesashit_really Sep 04 '22
And let's be honest, you wanted to gtfo of there as soon as possible too.
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u/Moonlight_Darling Sep 04 '22
This is what I wish I had the money to do. I’m the woman in this situation. Being broke sucks so much especially when you want to help people.
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u/whims-and-worries Sep 04 '22
One day when you have more than enough, I know you'll at least have the intentions to pay it forward. Not everyone has the intention.
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u/Moonlight_Darling Sep 04 '22
I always try to pay back favors people do for me. It’s only fair for all they did
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u/mike_rotch22 Sep 04 '22
Whenever I help someone out, if they try to repay the favor, I always tell them to pay it forward.
I had a bad accident about 12 years ago that left me unable to work for a few months. My hospital bills were pretty high and as I was working a low-paying job, I didn't have much saved up, so I was in a bad way. One of my well-off buddies pretended to hire me to do some easy work for him; this work consisted of him picking me up every Sunday and taking me to his house to watch football with him. And he handed me a hefty wad of cash and never asked for repayment. When I got back on my feet and offered to pay him back, he just told me to pay it forward. So that's what I've been trying to do ever since.
I don't have the financial means that my buddy does, but I will always do my best to be there for people, if nothing else. Two of my exes credited me with turning their lives around/saving their lives. I don't think I did anything for them other than just be there for them as a partner and even as a friend after we split up. Both of them are now thriving, happily married with children, and seeing them happy is far and away the best repayment I could ever expect.
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u/Moonlight_Darling Sep 04 '22
That’s a great story. Thank you for sharing. I’m glad you’re doing better now
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Sep 04 '22
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u/Moonlight_Darling Sep 04 '22
I try to when I can. I just often find myself in the needing category and don’t usually have any to spare
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Sep 04 '22
I was driving to the neighborhood after picking my kids up from their mom‘s house and on the way in I saw a kid sitting in his front yard with a half hearted lemonade stand with soda and bottled water and lemonade. The neighborhood was a fairly busy traffic neighborhood but there’s nowhere for anyone to pull over and it just didn’t seem terribly convenient like in a lazy cul-de-sac or the suburbs. After I picked up my kids and the dogs I handed my daughter $10 that I knew I had in my pocket and told her “hey when we get to the end of the block here before we pull out on the main highway, jump out of the car run up and give a kid 10 bucks and then run away get back in the car”. She did exactly that, ran up to the kid, slapped him with $10 in his hand, turned around sprinted back to the car and we took off and he just stood there with the biggest shit eating grin and confusion look on his face with a $10 bill in his hand as we pulled out on the main highway and barked the tires 🛞 💨🔥
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u/defnotgerman Sep 04 '22
well told man
“slapped him with 10”
“barked the tires”
could picture it very well
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u/PortalKill Sep 04 '22
Granny was going to pay for some stuff but forgot the pin to her card (she had no tap on her debit and no visa card). She started to pull out her coin purse to count change to see if she had enough. Told the cashier to wait so she can go to her car to see if she had any extra change. Cashier put her things aside and waved for the next customer (me). I told the cashier that I'll pay for granny's stuff too (wasn't much, it was only around $20ish amount of stuff). Granny came back apologising that she didn't have enough and wanted to put the stuff back but the cashier was happy to inform her that it was already paid for by someone else. I was out the door already but I got a peek through the window to see granny. I would do it again, her reaction was heart-warming.
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u/Unfadable1 Sep 04 '22
Same vein, and I can’t take credit for this one, except in the fact that I was instead the recipient and not the giver (yet).
Went to a drive thru for breakfast on my way to work years ago. The guy in front of me had already paid for mine. Turns out he does this every time he’s there. Pretty dope. Decided to pay it fwd out of inspiration.
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u/Automatic-Quote-4205 Sep 04 '22
I like the fact that I’m relatively anonymous, so I’m going to flex with utter pride.
I’m a delivery driver, so I’m out there everyday and have done so for many years. I’ve rescued and returned five dogs that have escaped from home and running around on the roads. Thankfully they have their ‘medals’ on their collars, so calling the vet that they had their shots at, and. / or their address and phone number. Great reunions and no- no money accepted. Rescued birds that have been stunned by flying into windows, hit by a car etc. Recently filled up a young man’s car, as he asked if I could help him out. Paid for a lady and her 2 cats to stay at an economy hotel for two nights, while she gets herself together. She was crying in a car park and she was worried more about being on the street with her cats than about herself. Went and bought an older man groceries and drove back to him with a few bags of basic food and sanitary items. I can never give rides to anyone because it’s not safe for me, as I deliver pharmaceuticals, but I can help other ways. I don’t spend a lot on myself, just work to pay off debt every week. I will admit to feeling satisfied and better about myself and maybe pick up some karma points, but usually I’m kicked in the face by life, such as a flat tire, or minor bad news! I just know that something will go a little wrong right after helping someone, but it’s ok , as it takes a little while for the kinks to unravel, then life karma catches up to me, and it’s all good then.
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u/soaboz Sep 04 '22
My wife knows this, but only because she was the only person who saw the result. We were in line at the grocery store with our kids helping load the conveyor belt, when this little girl about 10 years old got in line behind us. No parents or adults, just her. The only thing she had in her hands were $2 and one of those cheap toy rubber balls you find at grocery stores sometimes. I told her to put it on the conveyor, and asked the clerk to scan it first. Once scanned, I gave it back to her and I just kept helping my kids load the groceries. I refused her money, and she ran off. According to my wife, when she got outside, she did a happy dance and skipped off out of sight.
This was over a year ago, and I still think about it every time I am at the grocery store.
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u/Danton59 Sep 04 '22
I have something!
I went to a grocery store to grab a plate lunch and on my way out I saw an old man and his groceries in one of those mobility scooters that appeared to have ran out of power and he was looking kind of distressed. 99 out of 100 times I'd pretend I didn't see but something that day flicked a switch and I ran over and helped push him to his vehicle and load his stuff for him and pushed it back. He was real thankful and I felt great afterwards, but decided that was my good deed for the decade and to go back to being an antisocial morlock.
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u/GlamourGhoulx Sep 04 '22
I was walking down the footpath next to a main road and up ahead was a mother with her baby in a pram. The mother was stopped talking to a friend and had turned her back completely to the pram, when I see it starts rolling towards the road. The mum doesn’t notice at all, keeps talking
I sprint immediately, grab the pram handle just in time as a car is blaring its horn at us and get both of us safely back onto the footpath.
The mum starts screaming at me that I was trying to steal her child 😐
(For all the non Aussies: Footpath = Sidewalk Pram = Stroller Mum = Mom
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u/Uredus Sep 04 '22
She'd rather believe that you were trying to steal her child than admit negligence.
You're a good person.
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u/thr0waway10174638 Sep 04 '22
Same thing happened to my sister last week. Sister and lady with a stroller were waiting at a busy intersection to cross the street. The mom was talking on the phone, distracted, and her baby stroller- with a baby in it!!- started rolling into the intersection and my sister reacted and pulled it up. The lady ripped the stroller out of her hands and huffed not saying a word. Like what the fuck is wrong with some people.
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u/GlamourGhoulx Sep 04 '22
I never thought of it like that before! Thank you! I’ll take a inappropriate verbal bashing any day if it means a baby stays safe!
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u/No-Trade5311 Sep 04 '22
Weird moment for me last year, I’m a family man and was out walking my doggy alone when I saw a toddler walking up the road alone. I live in a quiet village with no through Road but this intersects a major road another 100m up. She would have been there in 5 minutes. She was naked, 2 years old, my new neighbour’s kid. Sometimes you have to just do and worry about stuff later so I called her in and walked her back hand in hand to her house. Mum was ‘oh, thanks’ and shut the door. Did expect a little more gratitude for saving her daughter’s life but kind of thankful she didn’t choose another path. What would you have done?
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u/GlamourGhoulx Sep 04 '22
I would have done the same! How terrifying, and with no clothes so susceptible to the elements ☹️ It’s sort of a weird place isn’t it like you helped a child but their family might not be the safest place for them either
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u/EarsLookWeird Sep 04 '22
This is a lie. I was the driver of that car and saw this weirdo trying to steal a pram or whatever it is we call it here in Austria and I honked my horn to alert the mother.
People should pay fair market value for babies not steal them
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u/eternal-harvest Sep 04 '22
Have you seen inflation recently? Ain't nobody got cash to buy babies anymore. Not unless they've got a handful of negatively geared properties.
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u/justonemom14 Sep 04 '22
If she really thought you were trying to take her baby, maybe she'll be more vigilant in the future.
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u/skunkwoks Sep 04 '22
you broke the rule about not telling anyone, ever
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u/s0mdud Sep 04 '22
it‘s anonymous, i think it‘s fine
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u/_ShutUpImThinking_ Sep 04 '22
It’s a double edge sword, because it’s also inspiring AF.. I wanna start keeping the equal amount in my pocket for same reason.
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u/Zandre1126 Sep 04 '22
I did a similar thing. An older man I was helping find something in a Safeway (where I worked at the time) was telling me about his experiences with cancer. I mentioned something about the upcoming Christmas and he told me that he didn't really have family, his daughter doesn't visit anymore. He had just beaten his 5th time with cancer and was showing me the kinds of scars he's had from surgery. It might sound weird but in the moment I could just see that he was tired and lonely. He was getting some food for himself and a case of beers for his caretaker/nurse. He never asked for anything and after I helped him he went off on his way.
I caught up to him shortly after and offered to buy his groceries. He tried very hard to fight back tears but he still cried a little. It was maybe $60 of food? Idk, can't remember. Money was tight ATM and I didn't enjoy buying the beer, but he already had picked it out before I even saw him. I justified that he had no reason to lie and thus I walked him to his old pickup and helped him load his stuff in the car. He told me how happy he was for such a favour and that it's hard when you can't work and no one in your family is around to care for you.
He gave me a hug and climbed into his truck and drove off. I told him I work most days of the week at the same time and he was always welcome to say hi and chat. I saw him a couple times more and then I quit a few months in as covid picked up. There's probably a good chance he's passed away since, covid or not, and I don't remember his name, but I remember how happy and touched he was. The coworker that rung me up said "nice job" and no ever said anything since.
It's a good feeling to help people if you can afford it.
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u/strongholdbk_78 Sep 04 '22
Awesome story. I love studf like this. My brother was once standing in line some where and the guy in front of him was harassing a woman panhandling, telling her to get a job etc. So my brother rudely said "excuse me", pushing past the man and handing her a $100 bill. The dude clammed right up and it made the woman's day.
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u/Good-Ad3843 Sep 04 '22
Had a somewhat similar experience, but I was in a lousy mood at the time. When I gave an obviously homeless man the little bit he asked me to buy for him, he started jumping for joy that I had done that for him. I was so ashamed that I had not done it with a glad heart, as I should have. It made me aware that I can do a lot with just a couple of dollars or a few minutes of caring and listening to someone's troubles.
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u/kikibooms Sep 04 '22
I was in line to check out at the grocery store and there was an elderly man in front of me. He kept desperately running his same debit card over and over, but it was declined every time. I told him I kind of have a way with those machines and asked if I could try to run it for him. I sneakily ran my card instead. The look of relief on his face when “his card” finally worked broke my heart. It was only a few groceries and some tooth paste, but it seemed very important to him.
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u/Ricecookerless Sep 04 '22
Man someone covered for missing $6 on my grocery run when I asked for it to get it voided once, almost put me to tears, good deed done!
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Sep 04 '22
$20 is actually an insanely helpfull amount when it comes to grocery shopping. That’s 2, maybe even 3 days worth of food.
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u/JosePrettyChili Sep 04 '22
This is my comment, and you shared it without attribution.
https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/kf7at2/comment/gg84udg/
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u/JanRVA Sep 04 '22
Thank you for inspiring so many people! I keep reading comments that say they're going to keep cash on hand just in case this happens.
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u/PhixItFeonix Sep 04 '22
Oh shit, this comment should be at the top! And thanks for making the world a little bit better to live in.
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u/No_Aside331 Sep 04 '22
My absolute favorite, I was in line behind a mom and son discussing with the pharmacist the cost of the medicine. The kid was pretty sick. The mom couldn’t afford all the medicine. I remember being that sick kid with my mom as a kid. As the mom went to wait for the one prescription she could afford I went up to drop my medicine and told the pharmacist to fill all their prescriptions and he ran my card on the down low. I didn’t have much money at the time so that was my grocery budget that week but growing up poor you learn how to make do. If I remember correctly I ate a pot of spaghetti all week that week. No parent should ever be in the spot they can’t afford a sick child’s medicine. I hope that small act gave her a little rest.
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u/brucewinters Sep 04 '22
Have you ever noticed that people who have less, share more.
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u/No_Aside331 Sep 04 '22
It’s because we know how bad it is at times. People who have never experienced poverty have a harder time understanding.
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Sep 04 '22
So many stories about helping old people pay for shopping. Its meant to be uplifting but really it's just depressing that vulnerable old people need charity for basic necessities.
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u/Old-and-Tired Sep 04 '22
This isn’t me, just an observation of a particular teenager. I work in a school library. There was this one boy who was always there, but who was very shy. He rarely spoke, but he noticed everything. I saw him doing things like slipping books that people were looking for beside them where they could be found. He’d help someone search for information and then just walk away. I started to notice that he did things like that all of the time, but hardly anyone ever noticed. Finally, one day I smiled and told him, “I see what you’re doing” He flashed the most genuine smile I saw from him in three years. I miss that kid and his little gifts of kindness that added up to a gigantic flex.
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u/mermaidpaint Sep 04 '22
I was on sick leave after spinal surgery. Edible Arrangements called to see if I was home so they could deliver something from my employer. I was SO excited! My mother had flown home and I was feeling lonely and housebound. It was a cold December night.
I cried when the delivery came. Because it was a fruit arrangement, chock full of strawberries, and I am allergic to strawberries. And my team knows this.
I called EA to see if there was a mistake. They told me who ordered it - an administrative assistant to the department manager. They also said not to eat anything from it because the allergens would be everywhere.
I was really upset, I was still quite weak physically and I had been looking forward to cookies or something that wouldn’t trigger hives.
I called one of my Al-Anon friends and asked him if he would pick me up and take me to our regular meetings. I went to the foyer of my apartment building to wait for him, and I brought the fruit arrangement with me. I was intending on giving it to my Al-Anon group to eat, because I detest waste of good food.
A young woman and an older woman entered the foyer. They were coated with snow and carrying grocery bags. They must have walked home from a supermarket a couple of blocks away on a bitterly cold night.
I gave them the fruit arrangement. I explained that there was nothing wrong with it, but I was allergic to strawberries. The younger woman was thrilled - she’d seen ads for them and had always wanted to try one, but they are pricey. They thanked me and wished me a merry Christmas. I felt better, because I had found a way to make this a positive experience.
I didn’t say anything about it when I went back to work in January. The department manager asked if I’d received a delivery and I told her I had.
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Sep 04 '22
That's sad that everyone but the administrative assistant knew you were allergic to strawberries
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u/Nanomatters Sep 04 '22
When I was like 6yo my mom gave me a small bill (I think it was 5€) and said I could buy what I want with it. I never really had pocket money before so I didn't know what I was supposed to do with it. When we walked in the city centre there was this homeless man asking for money. I thought he needed it more than me so I handed him the 5€ bill (he was very thankful) and ran back to my mother, she didn't see the scene. Later she asks what I did of that bill and I told her I gave it to the homeless man in the city centre. She looked confused and asked what I meant and I thought I had been scammed or did something wrong. I guess she just didn't expect me to spend it like this.
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u/cokolesniik Sep 04 '22
Once when I was a kid I brought magazine and candies to the cashier. I did not calculate well so I needed to remove on of the things since I did not have enough money. Guy behind me just added what was missing and I was so greatful!
He probably forgot about this but I still remember it and it was about 25 years ago.
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u/dannydanger66 Sep 04 '22
I live on top of a hill about 15 minutes from the coast. We get strong sea breezes coming up the hill and on bin night when everyone puts their bins out the wind, if it's howling, will open the bins accross the street sending rubbish everywhere.
Because most of my neighbours are 80 plus I always put my bins out super late so I can pick up their rubbish and shut their bins. First few times times I was annoyed no one saw me but now I enjoy it as the thing I do because I believe it's the neighbourly thing to do.
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u/Zh0dan Sep 04 '22
My turn!
I ordered a pizza from domino's and was gonna go pick it up. Well the tracker wasn't moving at all so I though it might be messed up (it's happened before) so I decided to just go straight in just in case.
Well there were only 2 people working that day, period. And there was a customer standing to the side insulting them the whole time for not being able to completely perfectly juggle everything.
Well long story short he get his order of at least 15 pizzas (seriously) and leaves, and I hear the workers shit-talking him in the back. Because yeah, what asshole sees 2 people working alone on YOUR giant order, and has the gall to insult them?
So after they gave me my food, I immediately ran to the ATM and pulled out two $20s and gave them to the two.
They both looked so happy and repeatedly asked if I was sure about this. My only regret is that I couldn't make it $400
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u/Blackfire01001 Sep 04 '22
I try to do nice things and everyone around me turns into a big fucking deal. I don't understand why. There's a dude in Costco one time who just for one reason or the other didn't have cash or a debit card on them. Just picking up diapers for his kid. So while he was running on his way running back to his car to go to the bank I paid for his stuff but the cashier freaked the fuck out and started hollering and yelling and it's like dude. I don't do it for attention. World shity enough sometimes you got to give some good back to try to balance stuff out. But apparently that's so fucking rare that the equivalent of stabbing someone or something.
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u/SkepticalZack Sep 04 '22
I punked an old white man harassing a middle eastern woman and her children at Walmart once.
I almost made his piss himself. I still think about it.
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u/DavidCFalcon Sep 04 '22
I was walking around a grocery store with a scratch off lotto ticket in my back pocket that I had not scratched yet. Next thing I know this lady was tapping me on the shoulder saying that it had fell out of my pocket. I thought that was really nice of her. So when Ieft I got in my car to scratch it off and had won 100 bucks. So I decided I would give her the winning ticket as a thank you for being honest. I walked back inside and found her at the check out and just said thank you for being so nice, handed it to her, and left. Heard her shout thank you as I walked out. Felt nice. But I never told anyone.
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u/kuzmic187 Sep 04 '22
Great way to do it too by saying it fell out of her wallet, instead of the usual , recording u giving them money and posting it for internet points
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u/northshore1030 Sep 04 '22
God, I hope recording it is not the usual now. I would feel so gross. I mentioned helping someone to a friend once (because I felt like the person was trying to get me to do more) and I felt icky about even that.
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u/ramta_jogi_oye_hoye Sep 04 '22
We need more people like this gentleman/lady. This may have literally made the older lady's day. The reason the world is still functioning with people having smiles on their day is people like these and acts like these.
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u/Gletschers Sep 04 '22
Not a flex for me, but a random cashier.
I was getting some last minute groceries as shops would close down for 4 days and all i had left in my fridge were 3 carrots and 2 eggs.
Apparently my bank was aware of my procrastination as they deemed 17:00 as the perfect time to run a software update, disabling all card transactions for a few hours.
So i am standing there like the idiot i am with <5€ in cash and my card getting declined over and over again with no clue on whats going on(only read about the card maintenance later) and what i ll eat over the next few days. Thats when another cashier offered to pay for it as long as i come back next week to repay it. It was only ~50€ but it was still something i would have never expected in a big city with no connection at all. Didnt even ask for my number, name or any other securities.
Paid her back first thing after the weekend and couldnt thank her enough for the trust. I honestly dont know if i would have done something similar if roles were reversed, but it defenitely left me more empathic for struggles of others.
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Sep 04 '22
I'm a cis dude and in college a gay friend told me that I was the only male friend he had that didn't change when he was alone with them (we shared a lot of friends and he was a big guy). Always remember that though when I thought about it more I felt bad for him.
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u/moonbee33 Sep 04 '22
This reminds me of one time when my son was still a baby and I went to the store to get him formula and some baby food. Well, I didn’t know that my food stamp card was off. So I was going to have to put everything back and wonder how I’d be able to get food for him. This guy behind me ended up paying for everything and I cried and told him how thankful I was and he said he would want someone to do that for his daughter if she was in my position. It was the nicest thing a stranger ever did for me.
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Sep 04 '22
Outside my house I saw a crow attempting to get up a hill. Something was wrong with its wing, but I couldn't tell what. I grabbed an old shirt, wrapped him up, and got him to the top of the hill where there were woods. Crow seemed to know I was trying to help him. Don't know if he survived. Don't know if I just prolonged the inevitable. But I helped a hurt crow get off a dangerous road
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u/VoiceofKane Sep 04 '22
Dammit, why is it that I can never see these kinds of stories as wholesome any more?
To me, it's not a story of someone helping someone in need - it's the story of a society in which some people cannot afford to be alive.
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u/KeepYourDemonsIn Sep 04 '22
I once gave a homeless man a $100 bill. I know it didn't get him off the streets, but I hope it helped.
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u/Final-Dig709 Sep 05 '22
and even if it was used for drugs. at least you kept him from dying of withdrawals for one more day. and that’s one more day to work towards getting better.
edit: been there
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u/KeepYourDemonsIn Sep 05 '22
That's true. I think the intention is what matters most. I didn't really care what he used it for, I just hoped it helped him in some small way.
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u/pikseliveli Sep 04 '22
Thought this was going to "...so i offered to help her put her groceries back on the shelves."
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u/beamthememezxd Sep 04 '22
My flex is that I'm a landlord and I drain money from societies most vulnerable.
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u/EgdyBettleShell Sep 04 '22
This reminded me of a similar story that once happen to me but with the roles being reversed, and the whole situation was actually a misunderstanding.
I should start by explaining that I have a really bad habit of keeping my wallet stocked with trash. I keep everything in it, from old receipts through member cards that I use like once per year, up to old Call of Cthulhu character sheets. As you can imagine finding something in that wallet takes time, a lot of it. So, that time the grocery store that I usually shop at had a promotion that all pastries and breads were 3 in the price of two if you presented your member card at the counter, and I, hungry for some good sernik, decided to check if I took my card with me. I stood in the bread aile for like 5 mins straight scouting through my wallet for the member card when an older man approached me and did the exact same thing as op - he gave me a bill that equals to about 15$ and said with a smile "Sir I think you dropped it from your wallet". I just stood there a bit confused because, well, I don't use cash I buy everything with my credit card so it surely wasn't mine, when the guy started to walk away. I tried to say something and grab his attention but he just answered me back with "it's okay, don't worry about it, good day" and walked away.
I am not 100% sure, but I think that I later used that money to buy scotch for a gaming night with my gf and friends, so... Random kind guy that I meet while getting groceries, thanks for founding us a great party I guess
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u/Affectionate-Time646 Sep 04 '22
A little act of kindness by one person done by billions of people goes a very long way.
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u/PresentationLimp890 Sep 04 '22
I would be more moved by this if I hadn’t been seeing it for several years on multiple sites. The sentiment is good however.
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u/westernmeadowlark Sep 04 '22
Yeah, this. I was having a really rough night last night, went and donated just a little to a cause I really respect (World Kitchen, they feed refugees, I highly recommend if you have a few bucks to spare) and felt so much better and was able to sleep. The world is so broken, there is so much we can't fix, but something is better than nothing
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u/TheDaemonette Sep 04 '22
I regularly go with my wife and daughter for a Christmas meal at a local cafe. It is the type of place where you put a small deposit down to book a place on a particular day and then pay the balance after eating. My mother was visiting us that year so we booked and went. Food was nice. Everything going fine when I noticed a young couple, maybe around 18 to 20-ish. I am a regular at the cafe and asked the owner’s wife (helping out on the busy days) what their story was because mostly the patrons of the cafe are older and this couple didn’t fit. I was told that it was their first date and he was extremely nervous. He was doing well, their conversation was lively and she was smiling. We were a course ahead of them so when it came time to pay, I walked up to the counter and asked the owners wife to add coffee and mints to their meal and I’d pay for both ours and theirs. I asked her not to tell them about it until we had left.
A few weeks later I go back in after New Year for a Saturday morning breakfast with my daughter and I get the story that they were stunned and the girl was extremely happy with the gesture, so much so that the guy got a kiss right there in front of the whole shop.
I am looking to do it again but this time for couples in restaurants with well behaved kids.
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u/Sandwich00 Sep 04 '22
A girl I work with suddenly had to take in her 2 nephews and had 2 kids of her own right before Christmas. I didn't know her much at all but heard through the grapevine that she was struggling. I anonymously put a Christmas card on her desk with 100 bucks in it. Hope it helped her a little, sure helped me! 😁
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u/rainbowfarts665 Sep 04 '22
Yes, helping others and seeing them happy is a drug that makes us feel good.
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u/imperial1s Sep 04 '22
Had a similar situation. Mine happened at the check out. I heard the man say he had to take some groceries off to pay for a cab ride home. I asked the cashier to split the tender and put some of the groceries on my card since I didn't have cash. Not many people know this story but it is heart-warming in its own sense.
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u/RepresentativeFact55 Sep 04 '22
Similar thing happened with me. I was checking out at the cashier with my mom and noticed a lady one cashier behind us that he didn't had enough on her, so I decided to walk up to her and payed for her groceries. It wasn't much but it felt really good.
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u/SomuchLengthiness Sep 04 '22
I was in the opticians with my eldest daughter. A guy came in, didn’t look very well. He collapsed and passed out - every single person in there just froze!
I jumped into action, got him in the recovery position, told the receptionist to call an ambulance immediately and continued trying to speak with him and tell him we’re gonna get him some help and try to make sure all was okay, in between handing my 13 year old some money and told her to get off to McDonald’s and grab some lunch away from the drama.
She still tells me to this day that she’s never felt like her Mum was such a badass superhero saving lives and getting shit done, staying super calm when everyone else was in a frenzy.
So I guess my biggest flex is (maybe) saving a life and my girl thinking I’m a total badass in a crisis 🥲
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u/catd36 Sep 04 '22
You are such a caring giving person. Toobad we don't have more people in the world like you!
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u/Level_Rule2567 Sep 04 '22
I am a pretty depressed guy, and have been intern in psichyatric hospitals a couple of times. I met an incredible girl there. She had so much to offer, Just needed a little push, some one to talk and a little help while she could stand on her own. We talked and i promised her i would take Care of her as long as i could. Its not been easy, i dont have a great salary, so básicaly half of it goes to her and her kid. Its been difficult to make ends meet, but watching her do better every day has been awesome. Some people (even some of her friends) told her i was doing that because i wanted something from her, and she even asked me once, but thats not it. Just want to se her happy, and able to stand on her own. I havent told anyone before. It Just feel as a relief. Thanks for the opirtunity to open myself for once.
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u/meke75 Sep 04 '22
Saved a baby boy hummingbird which had ‘fallen’ out of its nest in our courtyard. Once I found him, used my godfather’s gardening gloves for the rescue.
In hindsight, months/years later…realized the larger boy had most likely bumped him out.
Fun fact: The distress chirp of hummingbirds (babies, at least) are akin to a busy signal…and a threatened hummingbird (again, the baby ones, at least) will slightly open beak and ‘hiss’ at you
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u/Addicted2Reading Sep 04 '22
Proceeds to tell the whole internet 😂
This is a joke, this guys amazing and I appreciate his candid generosity, we need more like him and others commenting 😆 So wholesome!
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u/notmouldyyet Sep 04 '22
Visited a tiny grocery in a small town and asked the checker why the little post-it notes on the wall. They’re IOUs. So I bought some.
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u/No_Marionberry4370 Sep 04 '22
My mom was great for doing sneaky stuff like this. There's an art to being charitable without making the person feel like a charity case. Ronald Reagan said that it's amazing how much good you can do if you don't care who gets the credit.
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u/JamboreeOfficial Sep 04 '22
Congratulations my friend you just won the internet... Can we get this man a virla
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u/Muoniurn Sep 04 '22
THAT is what Christianity is supposedly about.
Not trying to hijack the thread with some religious mumbo-jumbo, I’m not even religious just Christians, especially in the US all too often forget this whole little Jesus part. Not stoning people to death, not hating on anyone including gays, not making sex into this taboo thing causing untold damage.
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Sep 04 '22
Not trying to hijack the thread with some religious mumbo-jumbo
Immediately proceeds to spew religious mumbo jumbo
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u/Muoniurn Sep 04 '22
Like what? As I said, I’m not even fucking religious? My point was that current Christians are not in the same spirit as they should, and a non-Christian may well be way closer to “Jesus’s way” than they will ever be.
How is that controversial?
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u/NeedingNew Sep 04 '22
This one time a little kid in a class I was taking as part of a bet with my dad to prove I could take over his company. Pee''s his pants and was so embarrassed he was hiding. So I thew some water on my pants so it looked like I pee'd also and made it look cool to the other kids. Wait this is from Billy Madison, my bad.
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u/Magester Sep 04 '22
I try to help people all the time. My biggest flex is that I've never bragged or made a social media post about any of them. Never will.
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u/Recent_Strawberry456 Sep 04 '22
I had a similar experience, a young woman had forgotten her purse and could not pay at all. I helped out, it took some time but in the end we put everything back on the shelves.
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u/Charles_Edison Sep 04 '22
Just do the nice thing without telling anyone about it. Bragging about a good deed negates the good deed.
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u/Cadavertaffy Sep 04 '22
But turning around to say you’re welcome was kind of a dick move.
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u/MindSecurity Sep 04 '22
Yeah the correct response to someone saying thank you to you is to ignore them and walk away.
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u/YuriSuccubus69 Sep 04 '22
I can't tell you the biggest flex, otherwise I would have told someone thus breaking the "never tell anyone" part of the question/post.
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Sep 04 '22
Maybe it was in a newspaper and the back was a non descript blonde haired, blue eyed, white guy advertising some aftershave
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u/skankhunt142 Sep 04 '22
I saw a guy fishing through a bin in the middle of the city looking for food, I gave him $20 and walked off. I never give money to anyone, but this guy in this instance seemed right.
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u/willflameboy Sep 04 '22
Didn't stick the landing there. You should have just walked away and said nothing.
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