Pay It Forward Day

 

Last week a friend of mine went out to dinner with her family. That may not seem very exciting, but as a mother of two young children a dinner out with the “whole family” can be more like a trip overseas than a relaxing evening out.  As the meal ended and the bill came, they were surprised to see that that half the bill had been paid for by an anonymous stranger – leaving them only a note:

“You have a cute, happy family and we remember how tight budgets can be when children are young. We ask only one thing in return – pay it forward.”

She was so touched by that outreach of human kindness, she immediately wrote on her Facebook wall to share with her friends that in a world so filled with violence and doubt that this one small act completely restored her faith in the goodness of humanity. 

After reading her story I found myself at a toll booth paying for the person behind me and telling the toll booth attendant to tell that person to “pay it forward”…I’m not sure if he was confused by my words or by the fact that I wanted to pay the extra $1.25 for a total stranger and hopefully he did indeed convey my message.

April 25^th has been dubbed as International Pay It Forward Day, a day to commit random acts of kindness for others in our community. So today as you head home from work, go to the grocery store, pick up the kids from soccer practice, or whatever else occupies our busy lives, think of one thing you can do to bring some goodness into the life of others.  Here are a few ideas:

• If you walk into a coffee shop, buy the person next you their cup of coffee, or that student    busy studying for finals
• Put a dollar or spare change in the box next to the cash register for whatever charity that store is supporting
• Thank a soldier
• Stop at the pet store and pick up a bag of food for the local animal shelter
• Pick up the tab for someone else at a restaurant
• Take a walk around the neighborhood and bring a bag to pick up any trash that you might find
• Take a look around your house and see if there are books or clothes that can be donated
• Let someone go before you at the grocery store
• Pay a toll for the person behind you (I did it and it felt great!)

These are just a few ideas that you can do today, or any day.

From all of us at Tropical Financial Credit Union Happy PAY IT FORWARD DAY!   

^Amy