Scott and I did a Random Act of Kindness the other day in honor of Jenica’s upcoming 2nd birthday. We went to dinner at Red Lobster with our oldest son, Tory. Seated in the booth in front of us was a family of five: Mom, Dad, 2 little girls and their seven-week old baby boy. The baby was screaming inconsolably and I could see the frustration in Mom and Dad’s face as they passed this little guy back and forth trying everything they could to quiet him. People around the area began throwing them dirty looks and whispering to themselves. I felt bad for them, so I walked over to their table and said, “I know you don’t know me but I wouldn’t mind holding your baby for your while you eat dinner together.” They thanked me and I told them that I have had 4 babies and I have done before exactly what they are doing. I also said that “anyone around here giving you dirty looks about your baby crying has either never tried to keep a baby quiet in public or has forgotten what it feels like!” The mother’s eyes teared up as she grabbed my arm and said, “God bless you...thank you so much!” I then rejoined Scott and Tory for dinner. As we ate I told Scott about the conversation and he suggested that now was the perfect time to do a Random Act of Kindness. I agreed, so we called the waiter over and told him that we would like to pick up their bill. We asked him if he would “wait until we left to give them their bill holder but instead of the bill being inside, put this inside” and we handed him a card that read “This Random Act of Kindness was done in loving memory of our beautiful child, Jenica Lynn (April 23-June 19, 1998). The waiter became teary-eyed when he read the card and agreed to the plan. We settled the bills and as we walked down the aisle to leave, we passed by the mother who was standing behind a wall still trying to console her son. She reached out to me and said, “Thank you so much! You were so nice to take the time to talk to me. I hope we meet again someday, but next time I hope I have a babysitter!” I said, “Congratulations on your son...he is such a blessing!” We drove out before they had left the restaurant, but I’ll bet that poor woman just burst into tears. I had told her that I had 4 babies, but she had no way of knowing that my third baby and only daughter at the time had died when she was 1 week older than her third baby, and only son! Scott and I drove home feeling so good that night. It was probably one of the best feelings that we have ever had!
PLEASE SHARE YOUR KINDNESS PROJECT STORIES WITH US!
